


It Happened on the 4th of July

by LizaCameron



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Episode: s05e21 Gaza, F/M, Humor, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-08-18
Updated: 2004-08-18
Packaged: 2019-05-30 13:32:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 27,903
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15097694
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LizaCameron/pseuds/LizaCameron
Summary: Josh visits Donna in Wisconsin as she recovers from the events of Gaza.





	It Happened on the 4th of July

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

 

"I miss you." Where had that come from? She had just been telling him how her niece and nephew had staged a one-act play for her entertainment the previous night, and he responds with 'I miss you?' Of course, it was true; he missed her like he would miss oxygen if it were deprived him, but he hadn't meant to say it. Usually he kept their conversations away from anything sentimental. She would give him the full report on her progress and how her family was driving her a little bit closer to insanity every day, and he would tell her how bad the new temp was or which Congressperson was currently in need of a smack down. He held his breath. Not that it should be an odd sentiment between them, but after how they'd left things in the hospital, he'd been terrified to get into a weird personal area. For all he knew she had a foreign photographer, prone to inappropriate touching, camped out in her parents' den.

"I miss you, too."

"Really?" His tone was eager. Damn. He hadn't meant to sound that desperate.

"Really." Donna took a deep breath. She had missed him. A lot. In fact, their daily conversations had been the highlight of her existence over the past few weeks. She knew going to her parents' house in Wisconsin to recover had been for the best. They could provide her constant care; her mom was retired, her dad's schedule very light in the warm weather months. Her brother and sister-in-law, both teachers with the summer off, lived just down the street with their two kids. She had plenty of people to give her the love, care and attention that her recovery required. It had been the smart decision. The right decision... except for one thing. She knew it would be hard being away from her home in D.C. for a couple of months, but she quickly realized it wasn't Washington that she missed. It wasn't her apartment, or her belongings, or the White House. It was him.

"What do you miss most?" Josh mentally patted himself on the back. Whenever in doubt, retreat and regroup with a smirk and a joke.

"The arrogance." She replied without missing a beat. God, she had missed that. She'd missed them, and it wasn't just since she'd come to Wisconsin. She'd been missing them for quite some time, even before she'd left on the Codel.

He replied with a sharp staccato laugh. "I guess I walked into that one."

"Guess you did." She paused. Her throat went dry, and involuntarily she wiped her suddenly sweaty palms on her T-shirt. The last couple of days she'd thought a lot about what she was about to do, but she had never expected to work up the courage to actually do it. But he'd just given her an opening and she knew she wouldn't be able to forgive herself if she passed it up. "You said the President and First Lady are spending the holiday weekend in New Hampshire..."

"They are."

"So things should be quiet around there over the 4th of July?"

"Should be."

"Come visit me."

"What?" Had he heard her correctly? No way did she just say what he thought she just said.

"Come visit me over the 4th of July." Now it was Donna's turn to pat herself on the back. Her voice sounded strong, confident, casual. She felt anything but those things. Because as natural as it was for them to talk on the phone for sometimes upwards of an hour every day, he was still her boss, and bosses didn't normally visit their assistants for long weekends at their parents' houses half-way across the country. But normal bosses also didn't usually fly to Germany, either. Did they? She actually didn't know. She wasn't used to having a normal relationship with a boss.

He felt like his heart had stopped. Had she just invited him to Wisconsin? "In Wisconsin?"

"Well, that's where I am. If you were to visit me, you would have to come to Madison."

"Would I have to eat cheese?" His head was spinning. Good thing he was sitting down at his desk.

"You like cheese."

"I do like cheese."

"We have the best cheese."

"So I hear."

"It would be like a cheese vacation."

"How could I pass that up?"

And just like that he agreed to visit her in Wisconsin.

***

Donna's heart pounded as she hung up the phone. She couldn't believe what had just happened; she never thought she'd work up the nerve to mention it, let alone that he'd actually agree. To a trip that required airline travel and staying at the home of her Midwestern parents. What had she been thinking? It was too much. Too much to ask, too much pressure... but she knew what she had been thinking. She'd been thinking how much she wanted to see him. She'd been thinking that she wanted to finish what they started in that hospital room in Germany.

Well, maybe started was not the right word. Truly, they hadn't started anything, but it felt as if something had changed between them, shifted under the extreme circumstances. She wasn't sure what it was, but she knew what she hoped it was.

As much as she'd tried to follow CJ's advice, have a one-night stand, do something that didn't involve Josh Lyman... who was she kidding? She remembered looking between them in that hospital room in Germany and realizing there was no contest. How could she work up any spare feeling for a man she'd had a brief fling with, when the man that she... well, the man who was the most important person in her life was standing over her bed, looking down at her like she was the most important thing to him?

When he'd finally had to leave, she would have sworn his eyes were damp. However, she might not have been the best person to bear witness to such a happening, what with her own vision being compromised by big, fat, salty tears. They hadn't really talked about anything; hadn't talked about what a huge gesture he'd made by flying to Germany or what that meant. She hadn't explained what was going on with Colin and he hadn't asked.

He did make several attempts at talking her out of going to Wisconsin, but in the end he said he understood why she felt she had to go back there for her recovery. He'd left her in the care of her mother, but not until he'd elicited at least one promise.

"Call me every day." She remembered how urgent his voice had been. It wasn't a request.

"I will." She'd been gratified at how critical it seemed to be to him.

"I'm serious, Donna, I need to hear from you...every day, hear your voice every day, or I'm coming to find you."

She remembered smiling through her tears and solemnly promising that not a day would go by in which they didn't talk. And none had.

***

He was going to see Donna. Different emotions flooded through him; he was both elated and petrified. The petrified part of him told him he was crazy. No way should he fly to Madison, Wisconsin to see his assistant. The safe thing to do would be to call and tell her he couldn't come. That definitely was the smart course of action. Standing in his doorway he looked back at the phone, hesitating for only a moment before striding down the hall.

"Hi Margaret, is he available?"

"Nancy McNally is in there. But it should only be a couple more minutes. How's Donna?"

At the mention of her name, Josh smiled. "She starts physical therapy this week, and last night her niece and nephew apparently put on some play for her about pottery and wizards."

Margaret looked at him oddly for a moment. "Are you talking about Harry Potter? They put on a play about Harry Potter?"

"Yeah, that sounds right."

"It's Harry Potter, Josh."

"Okay."

"You couldn't remember that? It's a cultural phenomenon. There are books, movies... any of this ringing a bell?"

"Hmmm... nope, never heard of it," Josh admitted thoughtfully.

"You need to get out more." Margaret shook her head at him in disgust.

"Do I? Should I maybe dress up with Suzie from Political Affairs and Dale from Human Resources as characters from children's fiction and go stand in line just to buy a book?" He smirked at her.

"Donna told you that story?"

"Yup. Yesterday. She said you ended up having to dress up like a boy or something."

"I have red hair, Josh. It was only natural if we were going as the three of-" she stopped mid-thought. "You were teasing me?" She narrowed her eyes at him.

"Just a little." He winked. "Donna said you get very upset if people don't respect your little wizard friend." Margaret would have gotten indignant with him, but she was too surprised. It was the first time she'd heard Josh really joke since he'd gotten back from Germany. Something had put him in a good mood.

Just then the door opened and Nancy McNally strode out with a nod and a greeting to Josh before she vanished down the hall. Margaret announced his presence to Leo.

"Josh, come in, what is it?"

"Do you think I could be away over the 4th of July?" He asked without overture.

Leo looked at him oddly. In five and a half years in office, Josh had rarely asked for time off. Taking that into consideration, as well as the events of the past couple of months, was all it took for Leo to agree. "Things should be quiet around here, it shouldn't be a problem."

"Great. I appreciate it." Now that he'd cleared the major hurdle, he would have thought he'd be nervous. Because now there was nothing standing in his way, he was really free to go and visit her. Well, to be honest, maybe he was a little nervous, but mostly he was excited. He turned to leave, but was halted by Leo's next question.

"Anything exciting?" Could Leo read his mind?

Josh knew he needed to be upfront with his boss. It didn't feel like he was doing anything wrong by going to Wisconsin to visit his injured assistant, but realistically others might think differently. "You should know I'm planning to visit Donna in Wisconsin."

The Chief of Staff nodded. "I see."

Josh braced himself for Leo's reaction and started mentally preparing for battle. When it came down to it, he told himself, it was absolutely none of Leo's business where he went, and Josh had no intention of bowing to any pressure. Wow, when had visiting Donna become so important? He'd only had the plan for fifteen minutes and he was already willing to risk his job to ensure that it happened.

Leo looked down at his desk for a moment before meeting Josh's eye. "Give her a hug for me, will you?"

Josh felt himself relax with relief and a little surprise. "Yeah... I will." He started for the door again, but turned back once he reached the opening. "Leo?"

He looked up. "Yeah?"

"Thank you."

Leo just nodded, gave him a half-smile and then started working again.

***

"That's really his name?" Josh asked incredulously.

"Yup."

"Sven?"

"Yes."

"How was it?" He cringed, knowing this was going to be a painful and slow process that she was embarking on.

"Pretty bad," she said in a quiet voice.

"How do you feel now?"

"Tired and sore."

"I'm sorry you have to go through this," he said with complete sincerity.

"I know you are."

They were both silent for a moment until Josh lightened the mood by teasing in a playful voice, "I'm not sure about a Sven as your physical therapist. I was picturing more of a Helga, you know, an East German swimmer type with a bun and a bad case of psoriasis... I'm guessing Sven doesn't fit that description."

Donna giggled. "Not so much. He's Swedish and 26... he was an exchange student at UW and loved it here and found a way to stay."

"I think you'd be better off with Helga."

"You think I'd recover quicker and get more out of therapy if my physical therapist had psoriasis?" She asked with a giggle.

"No, I think you'd be better off if your physical therapist wasn't some strapping Scandinavian with dubious immigration status." Josh changed the subject without taking a breath. "I booked a ticket."

"You did?" She inhaled sharply.

"Is that okay? Do you still want me to come?" He asked with a thread of anxiety in his voice.

"Yes," she answered quickly and with a slight squeak. "Of course. It's really okay for you to be away?"

"Cleared it with Leo and everything. Even told him where I was going."

"He's okay with you coming here?"

"Said to give you a hug from him."

"Oh... well, good," she stuttered. "When are you coming?" Her heart started beating faster.

"Well, let's see..." He checked the travel itinerary he'd printed out, "I fly through Milwaukee and land at Dane County Regional Airport at 6pm on Friday, July 2nd. That way I can work half a day on Friday before I leave."

"Josh did you book this yourself on the internet?" She asked the question mockingly, yet real apprehension was obvious in her voice.

"I did." He replied proudly.

"Are you sure that's wise..."

"Have faith, Donnatella, I can use the internet."

"No... no... you really can't."

"Well, I did," he said with great self-satisfaction.

"Please e-mail me what they sent you so I can check and make sure everything is okay."

"Donna, I am practically an expert..."

"Josh, you are an expert at many, many things, but using the internet is not one of them."

"You think I'm an expert at many, many things?" His smirk read loud and clear, even over the phone.

"Oh Lord." She realized belatedly what she'd said.

"What do you think I'm an expert at?"

She sighed loudly. "Well, for one, you're an expert at annoying me."

"Uh-huh?" She could tell he was smiling.

"For another, you're an expert at recognizing talent when it hires itself."

He laughed. "What else?"

'Being there when I really need you,' she thought. Nope, can't go there. "House rules and procedures?"

"All right." He chuckled. "So, what did your parents say?"

"They're thrilled."

"Really?"

"Well, they will be."

"You haven't told them I'm visiting."

"I was... waiting." Her voice was hesitant.

"For what?" Then it dawned on him. "Oh... until you knew for sure I was really coming..." She was silent. "I'm coming, Donna."

"I know," she said confidently. "You have a reservation and everything. That you need to e-mail me just so I can check-"

"Donna..."

"Please, I should have your itinerary anyway, right?"

"Yeah, okay." He finally gave in, trying to sound exasperated, but it was hard with the goofy grin on his face.

***

"What is it?" He turned the hideously rainbowed strip of loosely held-together yarn over in his hands.

"It's very obviously a scarf. I made it myself."

"You knitted her a scarf?" Josh eyed the sorry garment with disdain.

"I just took up knitting... to relief stress."

"When did you have time?" He looked at her curiously.

"All that hurry up and waiting we did at Camp David."

Josh nodded as he remembered those long days. "You want me to give her a knit scarf, from you, on the 4th of July?"

"Yes."

"Isn't that a little... I don't know... insane?" Josh asked.

"It's a gesture, Josh. A present, something I've made with my own hands. A peace offering."

"A peace offering? Why..."

"Can you just take it to her?" CJ asked, exasperated.

"What's going on, CJ?" Josh surveyed her curiously.

"Nothing, why do you think something's going on?"

"Why are you knitting Donna a scarf as a peace offering?" He asked pointedly, and with not a little amusement.

"Why are you going to spend the weekend at her parents' house?" Like all great communicators, CJ knew the art of answering a question with a question.

Josh just stared back at her. Finally, he shoved the scarf back in the gift bag. "Fine, I'll take her the scarf."

"Thank you." CJ looked at him curiously. "Josh is there anything I should know..."

"No, CJ, I'm just going to visit a friend." It sounded almost convincing, even to Josh's ears.

"Okay, but you'll call me if there is something I should say, be prepared for?"

"Yeah, if you need... preparation, I'll call."

***

Donna cracked her knuckles for the third time in an hour. It was something she hadn't done since she was a teenager, but something about being home and nervous brought the habit back to her. She supposed it was some sort of Pavlovian response to being in the house where she grew up.

She glanced down at her watch: 6:30pm on Friday July 2nd. Josh should have landed by now. Well, actually she knew he'd landed, because she'd called the airline's automated phone system and the familiar computer-voice lady had assured her that his plane had landed safe and sound, three minutes ahead of schedule.

Donna chewed her lip and wiped her brow. She wasn't sure if she was perspiring because she was nervous, or because of the humidity. Why was she so uneasy? This was Josh. Her Josh. Her boss. Her friend. The human being she knew better than any other. It was absolutely ridiculous to be nervous. Suddenly someone was saying that exact thing to her.

"What?" Donna snapped out of it when she realized her sister-in-law was speaking to her.

"I said...why are you so anxious? Isn't this guy your boss?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Jen, I'm not anxious." She tried to appear nonchalant.

Jen looked at her with a raised eyebrow, but all she said was, "Okay."

"Seriously, I'm not," Donna insisted.

"I said, okay."

"Yeah, but you don't believe me."

"No, no I do not." Jen pressed her lips together to try and prevent a smile.

"Why don't you believe me?" Donna persisted even as she questioned her own sanity for pursuing the subject. She'd been going crazy with the way her family was acting like it was completely normal for Josh to come and visit, when they obviously thought it was abnormal. Except for her mother, but her mother had probably witnessed too many oddities between boss and assistant in Germany to question anything anymore.

"Because you're acting strangely. So let me get this straight: he's your boss?"

"Yes." That was a question Donna could answer. Josh was most definitely her boss, a fact that was hard to forget.

"But he's just your boss."

"Yes..." The way Donna replied wasn't exactly convincing, but Jen let it slide.

"But you talk to him every day."

"I don't know, most days, I guess..." Donna hedged.

"No, remember a week ago, how you forgot to charge your cell phone and you were freaking out because your dad was in his office downstairs tying up the phone and you had to call him? I thought you were going to have a conniption until I loaned you my cell phone."

Donna tried to appear blasé, but blushed involuntarily. "Okay, we talk everyday."

Jen studied her intently a moment. "Donna, you have make-up on."

"I wear make-up. What's the big deal? It's just a little mascara and some lip gloss," she added defensively.

"I'm just saying I haven't seen you wear one lick of make-up since you got here."

"Maybe I just don't feel the need to impress my family."

"A-ha. So you feel the need to impress your boss."

"That's not what I said."

"It really is." Her sister-in-law smiled mischievously at her.

"Trust me when I say that Josh has seen me look... well let's just say, not good. I don't need to impress him."

"Okay." Jen was content to leave it at that.

"Again with the okay," Donna challenged.

Jen looked at her knowingly. "When he saw you looking... not good... was this when he flew to Germany to be with you?"

"Yeah..." Donna said slowly, realizing where the conversation was going.

Jen studied her with interest. "He went to Germany, he's coming here... it just seems like you must mean an awful lot to him."

"He feels responsible for me?" Donna's response definitely came out as a question.

"Is that what he said?"

"No, we haven't talked about it."

"I see. So he's just a boss coming to stay the weekend with his assistant?"

"We're friends." It was actually the only explanation Donna could offer.

"If you're friends, why are you so nervous?"

"Why are you pushing me?"

"Because it's easy and because you won't let me drop it, which makes me think you want to talk about it."

"Oh." Donna was a little startled by the truth of what she said. Maybe part of her did want to talk about it, trouble being, she had no idea what she would say. She knew why she wanted Josh to visit, but she wasn't sure what had compelled him to make the trip.

"That's alright; we can talk about it later. Go back to cracking your knuckles. Will you be okay for a few minutes? I need to run home and check on the food and my trouble makers." Her niece and nephew were ten and eight respectively, so Donna had been around when they were born, but since she'd left Madison for Manchester she'd only had brief opportunities to see them, until now. She considered getting the chance to spend time with them one of the positive things to come out of this horrible ordeal.

"Yeah I'll be fine, thanks." Donna actually really enjoyed when her sister-in-law stayed with her. She was the only one in her family that realized that even though she'd been injured, she was an adult and it was okay to leave her alone in the house for five minutes.

***

The cab ride took less than twenty minutes, but it was long enough for Josh to run through the complete gamut of emotions. He was so eager to see her that he could barely stand the anticipation, and at the same time, he felt acute pricks of anxiety. Since the campaign, they'd never been apart for so long. What if things had changed? What if what had happened to her had changed the thing they had together? Even if he didn't know exactly what the thing was, he was sure he didn't want to lose it.

He was also more than a little apprehensive about the reception he might get from her family. He wasn't worried about her mom, they'd spent quite a bit of time together in Germany, but he had no idea what to expect from the rest of them. He could feel the acid pool in his stomach.

When the taxi stopped, Josh hastily paid the driver and pulled his overnight bag and his backpack out of the trunk. As he studied the house, he just knew he had the right address. It looked like the kind of place where Donna would have grown up: wholesome, very Middle America and... nice. A home. He took the steps to the front porch in one bound. Once in the doorway, he looked through the screen and felt his heart skip a beat at the sight of her.

***

Perhaps the fan that was pushing air around the living room was the reason she didn't hear the taxi drop him off, because she certainly thought she'd been keeping a keen ear out for his arrival. Jen had been gone less than five minutes when a soft knock on the front door surprised her. When she looked up, her heart leapt into her throat when she realized it was him staring at her through the screen door.

"Josh..." She knew she had to say something and it was the only thing that came to mind.

"Hi." They just stared at one another for long seconds. It was silly; Josh had talked to her every day, so he knew she was okay. But seeing her, in the flesh, was the evidence he needed to assuage the irrational fear that had dogged him every waking minute, the fear that she really wasn't going to be okay. Finally, he raised his eyebrows and asked almost hesitantly, "May I come in?"

"Yes." Her voice was a higher pitch than normal. Why she should be so affected when she'd been sitting, waiting for his arrival, was a question that could only be explained by the overwhelming pleasure she experienced at seeing him standing, in person, on her parents' doorstep. "Of course, I'm sorry, come in. How was your flight?"

"Fine. Good. Fine... no problems." He let himself into the house and cautiously looked around.

"Just set your bags by the door for now."

Josh obeyed, laying his suit jacket over them, and then wandered into the living room where she was seated on the couch. He took in every inch of her with his eyes. She looked a hundred times better than when he'd left her in Germany. In the hospital she'd seemed so delicate and frail, and even though he didn't know how it was possible, even thinner than usual. Now she appeared much healthier, robust, even. Several weeks of her mother's cooking had had an excellent effect. Even better was her coloring. More than being back to her normal shade of pale, she had a rosy glow. Obviously, she'd spent some time sitting in the summer sun.

She looked up at him and realized that he was exactly as she remembered him, except he looked a little more weary than usual. It was crazy; it had been less than five weeks since they'd seen one another, hardly time for much alteration to occur, but to people who knew each other as well as they did, even the most imperceptible difference was noticeable. Besides, to Donna, five weeks away from him felt like forever.

Coming to stand right next to the couch, he smiled down at her, unsure what to do. He moved like he was going to sit next to her and then he bounced back upright. "Hi," he finally greeted again.

"Josh..." She giggled at his indecision and relaxed a little as it dawned on her that he was just as nervous as she was. "You can sit down." He looked down at the space next to her, almost like he was afraid to occupy it. She fixed her gaze on him and decided to break the ice. "Weren't you supposed to give me something from Leo?"

He narrowed his eyes in concentration. "From Leo?"

She sat up so she was perched on the edge of the couch and held out her arms to him.

"Oh..." His eyes went wide as he remembered; he surveyed her apprehensively. "But..."

"But what?"

"Is that okay? Are you okay? What if I hurt you?"

"You won't." Donna felt her insides twitch at his concern; she smiled up at him earnestly. "I'm really not that fragile." He looked uncertain. "I promise."

That was all it took. Josh sank onto the couch next to her and circled his arms around her in a tentative hug. Donna was the one that slid her arms around his neck and yanked him tightly to her.

As soon as they were in one another's embrace, all the nervous energy that had been putting both of them on edge melted away.

"You've gotten strong. Is that Sven's influence?" Josh teased into her ear after a minute.

"Probably, he's very inspiring," she whispered back, her breath tickling his neck. "Or else it's all the crutching." She pulled back from him slightly and studied him at close range for a moment. "You're not eating any vegetables, are you?"

He laughed. "How can you tell that? I have, by the way."

"You haven't. Don't try and fool me."

"Apparently, I couldn't if I wanted to." His voice grew soft as he watched her intently. "How are you?" Donna knew he wasn't asking about how she was physically. They'd already talked, repeatedly, about how she was physically during their daily phone conversations.

"Better." She kept the 'especially, now that you're here' part to herself.

"You look better... you look wonderful," he corrected before pulling her into another hug.

"First you're afraid to touch me, now you're hugging me again." She smiled into his neck.

"This one's from me."

"'Kay."

Josh took a deep breath and inhaled her familiar scent as he relaxed into her. In his entire life, he'd never been so happy to be holding somebody. He'd been so fraught with worry since the moment he'd heard the news of the explosion that he hadn't even realized that 'tense' had become his normal state of being. His relaxation, however, was short-lived.

"Are you okay!?" A man the size of a small mountain barreled through the front door.

Donna frowned as Josh quickly pulled away from her. She rolled her eyes at the intruder. "Yes, Chris, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

"When I got home I realized that Jen had left you alone." He was a little breathless.

"She left me just a little while ago and you guys only live four houses down." She shook her head. "Besides, I'm not alone. Josh is here now."

Chris had already noticed that Donna wasn't alone.

For Josh's part, he didn't remember the last time he's seen such a large human being. He rose and crossed towards the man, holding out his hand. The mountain didn't take it right away.

"Chris, this is Josh Lyman. Josh, this is my brother, Chris Moss." Chris just continued to size him up and Josh was about to withdraw his hand when Donna piped up in an exasperated voice. "Chris, shake his hand."

Chris grudgingly extended his hand. "Sorry, Lyman, nice to meet you." He continued, eyeing him curiously. "It's good of you to visit us."

"It's nice to meet you, too. I'm glad to be here." Since Chris was still clearly taking his measure, Josh took the opportunity to study him. He was blonde and fair like Donna, but he had to be at least 6'6" and built like a linebacker. Made sense-- Josh now vaguely remembered Donna mentioning that her brother had played college football.

Finally, Chris looked back to Donna. "Jen says we can eat whenever you two are ready. BBQ around back."

"Great. We'll be over as soon as Josh gets settled in."

"Do you need me to stick around?" He asked eyeing Josh suspiciously.

She shook her head. "Not necessary."

"But how will you get-"

Donna interjected quickly, "We'll manage. And if we don't, I'll call."

He glanced between the two of them, obviously not entirely convinced he could leave them on their own. "Okay, call if you need something. Otherwise, we'll see you in a few."

"Thanks, we'll be over soon." Donna waved to him and shook her head at Josh. "Sorry."

"So, I think your brother is really glad I'm here." Josh smiled through his sarcasm.

"He'll come around. He's just a little overprotective. Always has been; sometimes I think he still sees me as his fifteen-year-old kid sister. And both he and my parents don't think I can be left alone... ever."

"Really? But should you be alone?" Josh asked apprehensively.

"I can handle being by myself." Donna was a bit indignant.

"Of course you can." Josh didn't mention that he would prefer if she had someone watching over her, at all times, for the rest of her life. And if that someone ended up being him, all the better.

"I don't mean to sound ungrateful. Because I am... grateful, that is. It's just that at times it gets a little..."

"Smothering?" Josh asked with real sympathy, and she nodded in agreement.

"So, we have dinner plans?" Josh was a wee bit anxious at the thought of dining with Donna's older brother, since he didn't seem to have much use for him.

"Oh, yeah, we can go over as soon as you change."

"I need to dress up?" Josh was surprised.

Donna giggled. "Yes, we're eating in my brother's backyard so you need something more formal than the suit and tie you're currently sporting." She peered over at his overnight bag. "You need to dress down... you did bring something other than suits, didn't you?"

"I did," he replied confidently. "I can pack."

"Are we going to have this discussion again?" Donna laughed while raising an inquiring eyebrow at him.

"I got here, didn't I?" He asked smugly.

"You did," she conceded as she pointed down the hall. "Go change. You're staying in Chris' old room, second door on your right."

He followed orders and emerged a few minutes later wearing tennis shoes, khaki shorts and a blue polo shirt.

"You're wearing shorts." Donna's jaw dropped to her chin. She'd forgotten what great legs he had.

Self-consciously, Josh looked down. "Yeah." He looked back up to meet her eye. "Aren't they what I should wear in a backyard in July?"

"Yes," she managed to stutter before babbling on, "of course, they're good. Very good. You look cute."

He immediately started to head back towards the room where he'd taken his bags.

"Where are you going?" Donna called.

He stopped and glanced back at her. "To change, cute doesn't work for me."

"It really does," Donna said under her breath.

"What?" Josh narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously, thinking she was making fun of him.

"I said you don't look cute, you look like an outdoorsman."

"An outdoorsman?" He perked up. "Really?" She nodded, thinking that he would make a very preppy outdoorsman, but whatever placated his ego. He came back into the living room. "I can live with that."

"Good." She leaned back to grab her crutches from the wall by the couch where they were leaning. "Can you come help me?"

He was at her side in an instant. "What do you need?"

"A hand." She passed him the crutches, and then reached out her hands and allowed him to pull her up to a standing position. Once standing she took the crutches from him and then balanced under her own power. She crutched over to the wheelchair that was by the entrance and eased down into it. After adjusting her position, in a practiced motion she propped her crutches on her foot rest.

"You're pretty good at that."

"I'm okay getting around the house." She nodded towards the hall. "We'll go out the back. My dad and Chris built a small ramp down the two steps from the deck. And then we'll take the bike path that goes around the lake to Chris and Jen's."

Josh turned to face her; something had finally dawned on him. "Where is your dad? And your mom?"

"Oh." Donna's hand flew to her mouth in surprise. "Didn't I tell you?"

"Mmm... I don't think so." Josh crinkled his forehead in concentration. Had she told him something and he'd forgotten?

"They aren't here."

"What do you mean?" Josh asked warily.

"Grandma Moss hasn't been feeling well, so with you coming to stay, and with Chris and Jen right down the street, they decided to go see her in Minnesota this weekend. They left this morning."

"Oh." Josh's voice barely registered. Her parents were gone. They were alone. Suddenly, he felt like an overexcited teenager without a chaperone.

***

The trek to Donna's brother's house didn't take long at all. And, to his credit, Josh only had one wheelchair steering mishap along the way. Frankly, he blamed the construction of the ramp from the Moss's deck to the ground, but he decided he should probably keep that observation to himself.

When they arrived, Josh was immediately introduced to Donna's sister-in-law. Jennifer Moss was pleasantly round with olive skin, and her brown hair was currently pulled back in a short, messy ponytail. He couldn't believe how small she was next to her husband; she was well over a foot shorter than him. Josh thought that Chris could probably fit her in his pocket if he wanted to.

Next, Josh met Donna's suddenly shy niece and nephew. As soon as he was turned towards them, Jen enthusiastically gave Donna a thumbs-up behind his back. Horrified, Donna blushed and waved her off. Besides, she was more interested in Josh's interaction with the kids; she had to admit that as well as she knew him, she had no idea what to expect.

Josh was bent over, his hands on his knees. "So, whom did you two vote for in the last election?"

"We're not old enough to vote." Tom laughed, warming up to him first.

"I am," Tina piped up.

"You are? Who'd you vote for?"

"Jason Halleran."

"Was he running for President of the United States?"

"No... President of my class."

"What grade?"

"Fourth."

"Hmmm..." Josh nodded knowingly. "That's just when politics heats up. Was he a good president?"

Tina was serious as she shook her head. "Not really. He cuts in the lunch line."

"That is a problem. Why did you vote for him?"

Tina giggled. "'Cause he's the cutest boy in class."

"Well, next year, you need to find yourself another candidate, someone you can believe in."

She squinched up her nose. "Like who?"

"Like you." Josh reached over and playfully poked her in the stomach, making her giggle again.

Tom, having enough of his sister being the center of attention, grabbed Josh's arm and announced, "I'm showing Josh my turtles," before dragging him towards the house.

Josh looked back at Donna. "I guess I'm going to look at turtles."

Donna just nodded and bit her lip.

"Look at you." Jen smirked at her a few seconds later as they watched him disappear into the house.

"What?" She pulled her attention back to Jen.

"You're sitting there thinking that now that you've discovered he's not allergic to children, you can go ahead and make babies with him."

Donna gasped, her eyes suddenly the size of saucers. "Jen!" Her voice came out as a shocked squeak. "You're talking about my boss!"

"Yes, technically I guess I am," Jen mused.

"Well, don't!" Donna hissed loudly, her cheeks flushed. "Are you crazy? He's right inside!"

"Oh, he can't hear me. Chris can't even hear me over at the grill." She raised her voice. "Right, honey?"

Chris looked up from the barbecue. "Huh?"

"See." She waved and then looked back to Donna. "He's even cuter than I thought from TV and pictures."

"It's the shorts," Donna replied quickly. Probably too quickly.

"I see." Jen smiled at her with a knowing twinkle in her eye.

***

"So you're a teacher?" Josh asked Chris with honest curiosity as Chris handed him a beer. Donna elected not to join the others in a drink after dinner. Even though she was off of everything stronger than over-the-counter painkillers, she'd spent enough time in an altered state recently. She wanted to be as lucid as possible.

"Yes, high school geometry."

"He's also the head football coach of the South Madison Fighting Fireflies," Donna said proudly.

"The Fighting Fireflies?" Josh almost choked on his beer.

"Yes!" Donna looked at him defiantly. "It's my alma mater, too. I was a Fighting Firefly."

"Seriously, the mascot is a fighting firefly? Do fireflies fight?"

"This firefly fights." Chris scowled.

"Oh." Josh realized it might not be in his best interest, if he was trying to win over Donna's brother, to make fun of the Fighting Fireflies. That was fine, he could wait until he and Donna were alone and then mock them to his heart's content. "No, of course, I'm sure that is an excellent mascot. What do I know? I'm from Connecticut." He quickly switched focus. "So, Jen, you're a teacher, too?"

She smiled at his obvious change of subject. "Yes, Social Studies... Government and some U.S. History."

"Government? Excellent. Have you picked Donna's brains for insider info?"

"Donna?" Chris piped up, looking confused.

"Of course," Josh said slowly. "She works in the White House, for the President. She has lots of stories that I'm sure would be very interesting to Jen's students."

"But she's your secretary, right?" Chris asked; obviously completely clueless when it came to his younger sister's accomplishments, but his voice held no spite.

Once again Josh choked on his beer. He looked over at Donna, who had suddenly found something interesting in the grass over the side of her wheelchair.

"She is my assistant. The term 'secretary' conjures up the image of a role that is purely administrative, and Donna's role in the White House is infinitely more than that."

"Really?" Chris cocked his head like this was a new concept for him.

"Donna." Josh's voice was gentle, but his words imploring. "Don't you tell your family all the things you do?"

"She does, but my husband isn't always a skillful listener," Jen interjected. "We are all very proud of Donna's job."

"Sure... of course we're proud." Chris said it too quickly for sincerity.

"She has a tremendous influence on policy." Josh wasn't satisfied.

"How is that possible? She never even finished college." Chris spoke without thinking. His words driven by his desire to challenge Josh and not to humiliate his sister, although they might have had the opposite effect than what he had intended.

"Because I make the policy and she has a tremendous influence on me," Josh shot back, a little fire in his tone. He took a calming deep breath before he continued. "But it's more than that. In your class did you talk about the shutdown last fall?" But since he wasn't really talking to Jen he didn't wait for her to respond. "Did you know that Donna was actually in the meeting with the President and the Republican leadership when they reached the stalemate? Did you know that during the shutdown, eleven million social security checks almost didn't get out, but working from home, Donna made the save? That week she was invaluable to every senior citizen in this country; every week she's invaluable to me."

Donna stared open-mouthed at Josh. Before the Codel, almost every time she'd brought up her dissatisfaction with her contribution, Josh had found a way to dismiss her. So she was taken aback a bit by his passionate defense of her job.

Jen looked around. "Well, I knew all that." She looked pointedly at her husband. "But then again, I read her e-mails."

Chastised, Chris turned to Donna. "I'm sorry. I try, but they're just so long."

Josh stifled a smile, thinking that he couldn't fully fault Chris, considering how loquacious he'd found Donna's writing style at times.

"You're busy, I know." Donna's voice was quiet, but not offended.

"I'll make more of an effort... pay attention to what you're up to. I promise." This time he was sincere.

"'Kay." She smiled genuinely at her brother.

***

"I adore my baby sister."

Startled, Josh looked around and realized with horror that it was just the two of them standing in the kitchen. How had he found himself alone with Chris? Josh had offered to help Jen carry in the plates and food from dinner, and apparently, she'd left as soon as they'd entered the house.

"Okay." Josh had no idea what else to say to that.

"I just don't want you to think differently because of..." He trailed off and paused for a moment before narrowing his eyes at Josh. "You think you know her better than we do."

"Evidently, I do know her better than you." Was he crazy? This man could break him in two without breaking a sweat. He should shut up and get out as soon as possible, without doing or saying anything to offend the giant bear of a man.

"These days, that may be true," Chris conceded, looking chastened for a moment before continuing. "But I want you to know, that does not mean that she doesn't have people who love her and will protect her."

Josh faced him squarely. "She doesn't need protecting from me, if that's what you're implying."

Josh was certain that the glare Chris was leveling at him was quite effective for dealing with the most unruly of high school students. He congratulated himself for being unaffected by it. Well, mostly unaffected by it. "I just don't understand what you are doing here and I'm not asking, because as I've been told repeatedly by my mother and my wife, it's none of my business. But I do not want to see her hurt."

"Well then we're on the same side. The last thing in the world I want is for Donna to be hurt... ever again."

"Then we understand one another."

"Yes."

"Okay." Apparently it was over. Chris started to head towards the door to the backyard. Josh paused a moment to sag against the refrigerator in relief. Even if he was the king of confrontation in Washington, this was personal and a whole new ballgame.

***

When they got back to Donna's parents' house, Josh helped Donna get situated in a comfy chair and then settled back onto the couch, kicking off his shoes.

"So what did you think?" She asked cautiously.

"I really like your sister-in-law."

Donna smiled at him broadly. "Yeah? And?"

"Tina and Tom, they're neat kids. Very bright."

"Yes, they are. And?"

"Donna..."

"Josh..."

"I find him... delightful. But I still think he doesn't like me."

"Don't be silly. What did he say to you while you were in the house?" She asked with a modicum of suspicion.

"Nothing." He shook his head. "By the way, how are you saddled with Donnatella and he got Chris?"

"Saddled?" Donna gave him a humorous yet inquisitive glare.

Mentally, Josh instantly started to backpedal. However, when he opened his mouth, nothing came out.

"I thought you liked my name."

"I do. I do like your name. Love your name. It's my favorite name. If I had pet turtles, I'd name one Donnatella, too."

"Oh right, you met Donnatella the turtle. I think he's the most exceptional of Tommy's pet turtles."

"He?" Josh smirked.

Donna nodded sadly. "Yes, a little biology snafu when he was named."

He looked at her intently for a moment before replying. "Of course he's the most exceptional turtle. As a rule, Donnatellas are exceptional."

Instantly she turned crimson and looked away, either from his scrutiny or his uncharacteristic praise. When she had recovered, she still didn't look at him, but was able to speak. "Oh, and Chris is short for Christiano, so my parents saddled him with a mouthful-"

"Ahhhh!" Josh interrupted with a yelp and sat bolt upright. Something the size of a small shark had just attacked him; landed right on his stomach and then disappeared like the wind.

"What?" Donna, startled by his outburst, sat up and looked around furiously, trying to determine the cause of the commotion. As soon as she figured it out and realized he was okay, she relaxed back and started laughing, loudly.

"What in the hell was that?" He turned left and then right, every muscle in his body tense and on alert.

"Josh... it was just Meshach." She was still giggling.

"Meshach... what's a Meshach?"

Donna's voice held faux-horror as her hand came to rest against her chest. "I can't believe you forgot about Meshach."

He shook his head back and forth vigorously; obviously, he had forgotten, because he had no idea to what she was referring.

"That's surprising, considering how inspirational he was... along with Shadrach, of course, but she's probably hiding in my parents' bedroom."

"Inspirational?" He furrowed his brow before it dawned on him. "That was a cat that jumped on me? No way that thing was a cat. Maybe a mountain lion, but not a cat."

"Yes, Josh. A cat. A small, furry, non-threatening house cat."

"I don't like cats." Josh's eyes darted around furtively still looking for any sign of his attacker.

"You like these cats."

"I really don't."

"But you put them on the Supreme Court and everything." She could barely contain her mirth.

"I thought we agreed to never speak of that." His glaring eyes came to rest on her and his voice was serious.

Donna was unfazed. "No, you said I could never tell anyone that story. Come on. You can finally admit it. My parents' cats inspired you."

"Your parents' cats did not inspire me," he replied disdainfully.

"Yes, they did," she said smugly.

"Donna, you inspire me. Not some crazy cats." He was still sitting on the edge of the couch, keeping a lookout, making sure that it wasn't still on the prowl.

On the outside, her movement arrested at his words; on the inside, her heart beat faster and her breath caught in her throat. Had he just said that she inspired him? What did that mean? That had to mean something, didn't it? When he noticed her sitting frozen, staring at him with inquisitive eyes, he questioned, "What?"

She held out her hand to him as if she were offering a handshake. Confused, he tentatively reached over from his position on the couch and took her hand. "Hi, I'm Donna Moss." She held on to him tightly as she studied him curiously. "Who in the hell are you? And what have you done with Josh Lyman?"

"W-what?" He coughed, not faking befuddlement. She released his hand.

Taking a deep breath and finding courage, her eyes drilled into his. "I inspire you? Donnatellas are exceptional? All those things you said to my brother..." She crinkled her forehead at him. "You've never said so many nice things to me in a year, let alone all in one night... what's going on?"

"Nothing's going on. I just... should say nice things to you more often." He looked at the floor and scuffed his white-sock-covered foot against the carpet. "I'm sorry it's out of place when I say those things to you."

Donna wasn't convinced. "Is this some sort of misguided guilt thing about Gaza? You feel responsible for me so now you're killing me with kindness?"

"No. Well, yes, I feel responsible for you, but that's not what this is." His eyes were earnest. Willing her to understand what he was trying to do, which was a difficult message to convey since he wasn't exactly sure what he was trying to do. What he was sure of was how he felt about her. The realizations he'd made in that hospital room in Landstuhl hadn't gone away.

"What is it then? It's kind of strange."

"It's strange for me to be nice to you?" Oh boy, he had a lot farther to go than he'd originally thought. "Does that mean you don't like it?"

Donna's face softened immediately at the expression on his face. She answered gently, "No, it's not that. I just don't want you to feel like... I don't know... that you have to tiptoe around me or that you have to make it up to me or something. You don't have to say things to me that you don't mean."

"Donna." His intense gaze didn't waver from her face. "I promise you I've meant every word I've said." He paused for a beat, trying to find the words to make her understand. "In the past, I think I might have, at times, taken you for granted. And I... I don't want to do that anymore."

She met his eyes and felt her heart melt at the honesty she saw there. As they looked at one another something passed between them; she wasn't sure what it meant, but she knew it was more than they'd ever said with words. After a minute she glanced down and felt a smile tugging at her lips. As long as he meant them, his words pleased her; if he didn't want to take her for granted anymore, that was more than fine by her.

With a mischievous glint, she glanced back up at him and changed the subject. "So, did I mention that with my parents gone, I'm going to need you to help me shower in the morning?"

Josh's eyes popped wide as his mouth formed a shocked circle. How did she expect to say something like that to him, and then imagine that he'd be able to get any sleep, at all?

***

Even though Josh guessed that Chris Moss must be 35 years old, and had his own home and family, the Moss's had kept at least half the room that had been his intact; a shrine to his athletic accomplishments. So as Josh went to bed that night, not only was his mind kept busy with indecent thoughts of helping Donna shower, but he also had to stare at a wall full of her protective and slightly menacing older brother's trophies and awards. Most disconcerting was a plaque from the NCAA congratulating him as the strongest Division 1 linebacker in the Big Ten in 1989. Josh refused to look closely enough to read the engraved number of pounds Chris had to bench press to get that honor. It was just... disturbing.

But he couldn't help but be highly amused by an old blue and gold Fighting Fireflies banner that hung on the wall, although he did have to admit the mascot did look rather menacing. For a firefly, that was.

As he settled in, he heard Donna move and was reminded that the open door to his room was just across the hall from the open door to her room. Just another distraction clearly designed to keep him awake all night.

"Hey," he called out to her.

"Yeah?" Donna answered from across the hall.

"Do you need anything?"

"Thanks, I'm fine." Since he couldn't see her, she allowed herself to smile with pleasure at his attentiveness.

"So..."

"Yeah?" She tried not to think of how intimate it was to talk to him while they were both in bed and just across the hall from one another. The thought of it alone made her feel tingly and a little warm.

"What kind of a dumbkiss mascot is a fighting firefly anyway?"

"Josh..." She groaned.

"Seriously, it's a tiny little bug."

"There are fireflies in Wisconsin. We have a lot of water, you know, over 15,000 lakes; besides, they can be beautiful."

"Yeah, but a mascot should be something fierce like a shark or a tiger, not a harmless insect you could swat with-"

"Josh," she interrupted with a sigh that was more amused than annoyed.

"Yeah?"

"Go to sleep."

"Okay." Yeah, right.

***

"Thanks, I can take it from here."

"Oh." The help in the shower turned out to be much less titillating than Josh had imagined. Donna's injured leg was now in a removable brace, so she was able to sit on a bench in the shower. By herself. So all he really had to do was help her in, and then when she was done, out of the shower. And she was wearing a robe as he assisted her. At least it was a short robe.

Josh had been ready and willing to serve and he had to admit that he was a little disappointed. Not that he was some pervert that wanted to take advantage of an injured friend, but still, would it have been too much to ask to be called upon to help suds her up or dry her off? He didn't think so and he said so... out loud. "I thought you were going to need more help than this."

"What?" She tucked her hair behind her ear as she adjusted herself on the bench, moving gingerly so as not to jostle her injured leg too much.

"Are you sure you don't need me to stay? What if you get dizzy or something?" Despite the joking tone, his concern was real.

"I'll be fine and I'm sitting down. I will need help putting it back on when I'm done. The rest I can handle myself."

"But how will you be able to reach all your... parts?" Now reassured that she'd be okay, his concerned frown turned into a randy smirk as he stood looking down at her perched in the shower. "I think if you really want to get clean, you're going to need help. I'm an excellent soaper."

She couldn't help giggling. "You're an excellent soaper? Is that even a thing? What have you soaped?"

"Well, I soap myself and let me tell you, I've been very happy with services rendered."

"Really? I'm afraid I'm going to need more of a reference than that." Donna tried not to think about exactly what Josh had been soaping, because that made her feel flush in places that weren't entirely covered by her robe.

"Hmm... last Thanksgiving, my mom made me do the dishes and she didn't even re-wash them after I was done. That involved soaping." She dissolved into even more giggles and Josh looked inordinately proud of himself for making her laugh.

Recovering her composure, she regarded him with mock seriousness. "So since you successfully washed a couple of pots and pans-once-- you think that qualifies you to be my personal soaper? I don't know..."

"Hey, when did this turn into a job interview? I thought soaping would be a volunteer position."

"I'm used to professionals. My boss wouldn't hire anyone without impeccable credentials, and certainly not some yahoo off the street just because he has a loofah... and dimples." She glanced away from him; if she stared at his dimples for too long, she was bound to not only let him in the shower with her, but hand him the washcloth. "Besides, I'm sure Sven wouldn't approve of any amateur soapers messing up my rehabilitation. I think I should have him approve the successful candidate."

"Sven? One call to the INS and Sven will be back in Stockholm listening to ABBA and eating his mother's meatballs. And your boss sounds like a tight-ass."

"You would have Sven deported just because he might not support your application for the position of soaper?" She shook her head in disappointment.

"Well, we use the power we have. I'm sure, though, if I had a man-to-man conversation with Sven, a deal could be struck and-"

"Josh." She interrupted his thought with a sharp, but still playful, tone.

"Yeah?"

"My tight-ass boss has to leave... now, or we're going to be here all day, me half-naked and dirty."

"Sounds good to me." He wagged his eyebrows at her, but at her pointed look he relented. "Okay, but I'm right outside."

She tried and failed to suppress a smile at that. "Okay."

"Yell if you need anything."

"I will."

He was all the way through the door, and her robe was already half-off one shoulder, when he turned back. "Are you sure-"

"Josh!" She groaned as she hurriedly shrugged her robe back on. "Go."

"Got it." Not as embarrassed as he should have been, he shut the door behind him.

***

Once she'd dried herself off, under her own power of course, Josh was summoned back to help put the brace back on her leg. She didn't comment on how quickly he opened the door when she called out to him, but it was apparent that he really had been waiting right outside. He didn't share that he'd stood pacing in front of the bathroom door for the entire duration of the shower, ready to respond if she needed anything. He also didn't share that while waiting, he'd exchanged angry words with a cat... twice.

In order to help her put the removable cast back on, Josh had to get into the shower with her. As he was about to re-fit the brace, he stopped and touched her injured leg carefully. "How is it?" His voice was as soft as his touch.

"Okay. As good as can be expected, I guess." She swallowed hard at the tender way his hand moved along the still fresh scars on her thigh.

"Does it hurt?" He searched her face for the truth.

"Not right now." Satisfied with that response, he re-fitted the brace and helped her out of the shower.

By the time Josh had showered, Donna had managed to get herself dressed and serviceably put together. She was in the kitchen contemplating food when he appeared in jeans and a T-shirt.

"My mom made enough food to feed Chris's entire team," Donna said while poking her nose in the refrigerator door. "What do you want to eat?"

"Are we going to be feeding an entire team?" He asked with slight trepidation.

"No, but leaving us here alone, she wanted to make sure we didn't go hungry."

"Sounds like your mom. I heard the phone ring when I was getting out of the shower."

"Oh, that was Jen wondering if I needed help." Donna blushed, remembering Jen's comments when Donna admitted that Josh had helped her in the shower. "Also, she asked if we wanted to go to Tina's softball game this afternoon." She hoped she sounded casual. The last thing she wanted was to frighten him; she wasn't sure how much family time would be too much for Josh.

"Okay." Josh didn't seem the least bit bothered.

"Are you sure? We don't have to."

His lips twitched. "Donna, whatever you want to do. I'm all yours. The question is, are you up for it?"

"Yeah." She smiled slyly at him. "I do tend to get tired pretty easily. But I'm feeling energized today."

***

"This is a big vehicle. Are you sure you can handle it, Lyman?" It had been decided that Josh and Donna should drive separately, in case they wanted to leave before the end of the game. Her parents had left the Tahoe behind for just this type of situation. It was the best vehicle for Donna to ride in anyway, as it allowed plenty of room for both her injured leg in the passenger seat, and for the wheelchair in the back.

Josh was taken aback. "Can I... handle it?" It was one thing for Chris Moss to play the protective older brother, it was quite another for him to call into question Josh's very manhood by insinuating that he didn't know how to drive. Besides, Josh was certain he could handle the SUV. Well, mostly certain. What? He drove a sedan.

"It's got a 5300 Vortec V8 and a large turning radius. If you're not used to driving an oversized SUV it can really throw you. Jen should probably drive you guys. Or Donna maybe, she'll just have to pedal with her left leg."

"You're kidding, right?" Josh's annoyance was evident in his tone. And in his narrowed, currently piercing eyes. And in the defiant way his hands sat on his hips, arms akimbo.

"Pretty much."

"Because I'll have you know..." Josh was starting to get warmed up when it registered. "Wait... what?"

"As my kids would say, just Joshin' ya."

"Oh... that's very... funny," he mumbled sarcastically under his breath. "I can't decide whether I've stumbled into a Noel Coward play or a scene from Deliverance."

"Had you going, didn't I? Hey Donna," he yelled into the house, "Josh was about to call me out."

"No, I wasn't," Josh answered quickly

"You would have when I next suggested Tommy as being a preferable chauffer to you."

"Well, maybe then..."

***

  
"The third base coach sucks." They'd gotten themselves settled in an area set a bit apart from the bleachers. Josh sat in a lawn chair right next to Donna's wheelchair.

"They're 10 years old, how much can a third base coach matter?" She asked him as she marveled at how into the game he was.

"It matters; Tina absolutely could have scored if he hadn't waved her off of going home."

"You came to Germany." Well, there was a non sequitur to end all non sequiturs. She'd been waiting for the right moment to bring it up, and apparently her mouth, without her brain's permission, had determined that it was right now.

He looked over at her quickly and found that she was staring at him with curious, slightly bright eyes. So much for softball. He inhaled deeply. "I did."

"You were there when I woke up."

His chest constricted at the tone of her voice. All he could do was nod.

"I don't think I ever told you how important that was to me. You being there, it meant everything to me. I just want you to know that." The crowd in the bleachers cheered. Something had happened on the field; neither Josh nor Donna had the faintest idea what it was.

They were silent for several moments before he responded. "I wasn't the only one there." He met her gaze, his eyes asking the question that he needed answered.

"You were the first one there," she tried to joke as she shifted uncomfortably in her wheelchair.

"Was it a race?" It came out only marginally better than a whisper.

"No." She knew they had to have this conversation. Even though she wasn't sure where she and Josh were headed, they couldn't go there until she cleared this up. "It was a thing. It was over. But he saw me get blown up, so he came. I don't regret it..." She looked him directly in the eye so he could know her honesty. "But it is over."

Nodding, Josh moved to stare straight ahead for a moment. He was almost afraid that if he looked at her, she would be able to actually see the relief coursing through him. He knew that he had no claim on her; it was technically none of his business whom she was with. But it had been in Germany that he realized that, more than anything, he wanted it to be his business. He wanted her to be his business, and he would be a liar if he didn't acknowledge that it was quite nice knowing that there was no foreign photographer hiding in the den, waiting to romance her away from him.

Not knowing what was going through his mind, she reached over and tentatively touched the back of his hand. Finally, he glanced back at her and entreated, "You know I wouldn't have been anywhere else? You know that, right?"

"I do know that."

"I brought you flowers." That statement was accompanied by a slightly smug expression. For some reason, it was suddenly essential to him that she know that.

"You did?"

"Yes, but when I got there, you were..." He paused, remembering that terrible feeling of walking into her empty hospital room.

"What?" She asked curiously.

"Being prepped for surgery."

"Oh."

"Yeah. I saw you, you know, in there, through the OR doors."

"Did you watch?" She asked hoarsely.

"Not too much." He fiddled with the armrest of his chair while her hand still covered the back of his. "I sort of disobeyed all posted signage and was in a restricted area. So they moved me back to the waiting room before too long."

"All posted signage, huh?" They fell silent for a moment. A smile played at her lips. "You didn't stop for signage?"

His eyebrows shot up, but it took only a second for him to recover. He fixed his eyes on hers intently as he acknowledged, "I didn't stop for signage."

She looked down and chewed her lip when his gaze got too intense for her. Deciding to brave a topic they'd never discussed before, she looked back up at him. "When I watched your surgery, the First Lady is the one that made it happen. Did you know that?"

"No." His breathing hiccupped. "I did not know that." Waiting a beat, he ran his free hand through his hair. "You watched?"

"Uh-huh."

"Why?" For some reason, the answer to this question was suddenly all-important to him.

Meeting his eye, she felt the blood rushing through her veins before she responded. "Why did you ignore the signage and go to the OR room door?"

"I..." He stumbled and came up short when he tried to verbalize his feelings.

"Same reason," she said, quickly bailing him out. She felt her stomach flutter at the wide- eyed look he was giving her and decided that not only was he cute in shorts, he was also cute when he was flustered.

He nodded and flipped his hand over, under hers, so he could squeeze her fingers. That answer would do just fine.

***

  
"Hey, do either of you want a pop?" Donna was startled as she realized that  
her sister-in-law and her nephew were suddenly standing right next to them. She  
tore her eyes from Josh and they both yanked their hands back on reflex, from where they'd been resting together on the arm of Josh's lawn chair.

  
"A pop?" Josh asked, his voice a little choked.  
  
"Yup. We're going to take a walk over to the concession stand." Jen couldn't control her smirk as she took in his edgy disposition. "You look like you might need something to cool you down."  
  
"I'll go." He jumped up quickly and looked to Tommy. "Sound good? You and I can go and your mom can stay here with Aunt Donna?"  
  
"Can we get gummy worms?" He tested Josh, his voice rife with suspicion.  
  
Helplessly, Josh sought out Jen for the answer. When she gave him a quick nod, he put his hand on Tommy's shoulder and started guiding him away. "Is this something we have to dig up or are these worms for sale?"

"They're candy." Tommy shook his head and laughed.

"Alright, I guess that's okay, should we get your sister some worms for later?"  
  
"No, she thinks they're gross."

"Smart girl." He stopped their progress and turned back to where Jen had already plopped down in his chair next to Donna. "And this pop to which you refer, that is your colloquial term for soda... correct?"  
  
Donna rolled her eyes. "Yes, Connecticut, that is what we mean by pop. Would you bring me a diet and make it a small." She cringed. "I don't want to have to try to use the restroom here." She met his eye and added with an almost shy expression, "please."  
  
Jen looked between the two as they smiled dopily at one another and her lips quirked. "I want the exact same thing... but, um, make mine a large... and, you know, a Sprite. Thanks."

"So, by the exact same thing, you mean exactly the same, except for a different size and flavor?"

"Yes." Jen was completely unfazed by his mocking.

"Okay, then." Josh motioned for Tom and the two headed off across the park.

"I think he's taking to us just fine," Jen said as they watched them go.

"What?"

"Josh, I think he likes us just fine. You were worried about that, weren't you?"

"No... well, yes. A little, maybe."

Jen watched Donna out of the corner of her eye, but didn't turn towards her. "You were holding his hand."

"I wasn't!" Donna's response was quick and defensive.

Now Jen shot her a full-on skeptical look until Donna admitted reluctantly, "fine, there might have been hand-touching."

"Hand-touching? What in the hell is that?" Jen's amusement was not at all disguised.

"That's where the hands touch, but they don't actually hold." Donna tried to distract her from the real topic by demonstrating the concept of hand-touching with her own hands in front of her.

Jen laughed loudly, clearly not buying it. "I know handholding when I see it... and that, my friend, was it."

"So what if it was?" Donna regrouped; she'd known all along that the hand-touching defense wasn't going to hold water.

"Nothing. I think it's great. I also think that I wouldn't engage in 'hand-touching' with Principal Gillespie unless the world was ending, but I'm sure it's normal in most boss/employee relationships to sit around touching hands." Donna sighed and was about to try and stutter an explanation when Jen continued thoughtfully, "except if it was Vice Principal Vasquez. With him I would hand touch, but just because he's hot, not because he's my superior. The superior part is what would make it weird."

That made Donna laugh. "It wouldn't make it weird because you're married? To my brother, I might add."

"Oh, please." At that moment Jen stood and cheered the action on the field; she was obviously experienced at splitting her focus. As she sat back down she didn't miss a beat in the conversation. "Chris knows I have the hots for Vasquez, the whole female population of South Madison does; faculty and students... actually, I'm pretty sure even Chris is a little attracted to him..."

"Okay, that was disturbing. But is he single? Because you know I'm single... maybe..." Donna feigned interest as a last-ditch effort to throw her off the scent.

Jen actually snorted. "You're about as single as I am. Now what brought on all the hand touching?"

"Nothing." But Donna blushed hard.

"You're turning as red as Tina's jersey." She motioned to the field where the girls were playing in their crimson uniforms. "That is not nothing. Spill."

Donna bit her lip, but finally acquiesced. "He didn't stop for signage."

Jen studied her curiously for a minute. "I have absolutely no idea what that means."

Donna's mouth curved into a wide smile. "Well, I do and let's just say it's... nice... really nice."

"Nice is good."

"Nice is very good."

***

"Are you gonna be my uncle?"

Josh's head snapped down to meet Tommy's innocent, yet enquiring, gaze. "Wh-what?" He'd been handing the woman behind the register a twenty-dollar bill, but his hand froze in mid-air.

"Are you going to be my Uncle Josh?"

"Well... um... I don't... it's... I... um." Josh never expected to be struck dumb by a child, but here he was, stammering like an idiot; a political operative of the highest order, having no idea how to respond to an eight-year-old's line of questioning.

"Sir?" The cashier prodded Josh.

"Oh, sorry." He glanced back up and handed the money over to her. His mind went a million miles a minute as he waited for his change. Uncle Josh? To be Tommy's Uncle Josh he would have to...

"Mom says you're going to marry my Aunt Donnatella." He ingenuously mimicked his mother, "maybe by Christmas, definitely by Easter."

Excellent. Not only did they have him getting married, it was by a calendar of Christian holidays. Every Jew's dream. Not that he'd set foot in a temple in... well, it had to have been years.

He swallowed hard, trying to return moisture to his incredibly dry throat. He also thought he should sit down a minute, as his legs felt a bit like they were made of gummy worm ingredients.

Leading them to a nearby table, he relieved himself of the tray full of food and drink and then sank down on the adjoining bench. He turned back to Tommy deciding he might as well find out what else the kid had heard. "Did... did your mom tell you that?"

"No. She told my dad, but I could hear. My dad said that you're a doofus, but that he's okay with you marrying Aunt Donnatella."

A dozen smart remarks regarding Chris and who was the real doofus flew through his mind, but after a second he decided to focus on the matter at hand. "Did your dad say why he was okay with me marrying your Aunt Donnatella?"

"'Cause it's 'vious you like her." Tommy's full attention was fixed on the bag of candy he was trying to tear open. Josh sat still, feeling a bit numb as he watched the kid wrestle with the plastic. When he finally succeeded, Tommy triumphantly held the bag out to him. "Wanna gummy worm?"

Nodding, Josh reached into the bag and contemplated what Tommy had said while tearing a piece of the sticky candy in two with his teeth. As he slowly chewed, he looked over at his eight-year-old inquisitor. "You know what Tommy? Your dad's right, I do like her and I am a doofus."

"My dad's always right. I'm gonna play football like him. Next year he says I can watch the Fireflies play from the field..."

"Uh... huh." Somewhat recovered, Josh got up and grabbed the box of concessions and they began to wander back towards the others. On the way back Tommy kept up a constant stream of conversation, extolling his father's virtues, so fortunately all that was required from Josh was a grunt once every ten or fifteen yards. This was for the best, since that was really all he was in any condition to supply.

When they returned, Jen jumped up, thanked Josh and grabbed her and Chris's drinks as she excused herself to go in search of him.

"What's wrong?" Donna studied him curiously after he'd sat back down. She noticed he was a little pale and, unless she was mistaken, there was a suspicious bead of sweat on his upper lip.

Taking a deep breath and mustering courage, he looked up. But as soon as he met her gaze, he got lost in the blue of her eyes, and the racing thoughts that had whizzed through his mind for the last ten minutes calmed considerably. From there a smile formed on his lips.

"Nothing." And there really wasn't.

***

Josh and Donna declined to have victory pizza with the team after the game. Donna was indeed tired after the outing, evidenced by the fact that once they got home, she promptly fell asleep on the couch. Josh sat in the chair next to where she napped and actually got some work done on his laptop. The Moss's had high-speed wireless, so he was able to check in and return e-mails. Fantastically, so far nothing had come crashing down at the White House because of his absence.

Donna woke to the sound of feline-like hissing. "Josh..." It came out low and groggy and even a little sexy. "What are you doing to agitate that cat?"

"He started it. He's been watching me since you fell asleep. It's creepy."

She opened her eyes and realized that it had been Josh hissing and not the cat. Bringing her hand to her mouth, she suppressed both a yawn and a giggle. "So you've decided to take matters into your own hands and hiss at her. How's that working out for you?"

"Her?"

"Yes, that's Shadrach."

"Oh. They're impossible to tell apart."

"They look nothing alike, Josh."

"They're practically twins and I think the hissing was working. She seemed intimidated until you woke up and emboldened her."

"I emboldened her?"

"Yes. Now I'm outnumbered two to one, girl power and all that. She thinks she can take me down. I can see it in her eyes."

She shrugged herself into a sitting position and glanced over to him. "What can you see in my eyes?"

He made a show of concentrating on her. "You're hungry. Starving even."

"Am I?" She asked, realizing he was probably the one that was hungry. "What time is it?"

He glanced at his wrist. "Almost seven."

"You know you can help yourself to anything in the kitchen, right?"

"I was fine."

"You were hungry, starving even." She repeated.

"Maybe..."

"So food?"

"Food." He agreed.

***

"I almost forgot." They had just finished eating and were about to move to the living room to watch a movie, when a '70s style crocheted potholder lying next to the stove reminded him of something.

When he returned from the bedroom, he handed her the yellow gift bag that was now a bit battered from traveling in his overnight bag. "It's from CJ."

"Oh." Donna's eyes went a bit wide. She had spoken to CJ briefly on the phone once or twice and responded to her e-mails, but they'd never really touched on the conversation they'd had that night. She grimaced as the pulled the, frankly, ugly yarn concoction out of the bag. "What is it?"

"A scarf. She knitted it herself. Apparently it relaxes her."

"What am I supposed to do with it?" Donna tried to hold back a laugh as she turned it over, closely examining the rudimentary craftsmanship.

"Wear it in the winter, I guess." His grin turned slightly evil. "Unless you left it out accidentally and Shadrack or Meshach were to find it and-"

"Josh!" She whapped him on the shoulder with the scarf before her face lit up. "Hey, I think I just found a use for it."

"Hitting me?"

"Yes," she reasoned, "but only when you get out of line."

"Donna..." He began slowly, not sure how to ask the question that he'd been curious about since his conversation with CJ. "Um... she said it was a peace offering, but wouldn't elaborate. Why would she need to give you a peace offering?"

Donna breathed in sharply, but decided upon honesty. Why shouldn't Josh know what they had talked about? "Do you remember the night of the lockdown?"

"After the correspondents' dinner?" He questioned with a furrowed brow, thinking back.

"Yes."

"You were trapped with CJ..."

"Yes, I was."

"What happened?" He asked warily.

Okay, it was all fine and good to be confident before she actually had to say the words, now that it was time, not so much. She felt her pulse pick-up speed and something near anxiety fluttered in her stomach. "She said some things. Some things I didn't want to hear."

"About what?" He drew out the words.

"About you," she said refusing to meet his eye. "And me and my job."

"Oh." Josh sucked in his cheeks. This couldn't be good.

"Yeah."

"And?"

She took a deep breath, could she say this out loud? Just yesterday she could never have imagined having this conversation with him, but a lot had happened since yesterday. "It was upsetting to me. But in retrospect I think while she might have been right about some things, on others, she was off base."

"Like what?" He wasn't positive he really wanted to know.

"For instance, she implied that I've stayed in my job, even though I've outgrown it, because of personal reasons, but that you've kept me in my job for purely professional reasons." It was almost like an out-of-body experience for Donna, she could see herself talking to Josh, and she was calm, serene almost as she spoke, but she didn't feel serene.

"I see." Josh was pleased that his voice came out normally and not as the squeak he expected.

"And I disagree with that. I think that you've kept me as your assistant for the same personal reasons that I've stayed. I guess at first it upset me because the things she said made me feel foolish, and then it upset me because she couldn't see that you..." She shook her head without finishing her thought. "But it doesn't matter anymore."

"Oh." Josh had no idea what to say to that. Were they really talking about this in such a matter-of-fact way? After five and a half years in office, dancing around this personal/professional issue, was it now out in the open, just sitting there?

"That conversation is probably why she knitted me a peace offering. It was very nice of her to think of me and put forth the effort, don't you agree?" Actually, she felt better. It was good verbalizing those thoughts to another human being. Even if the other human being was the subject of said thoughts.

"Sure. Do you want to watch the movie now?" He asked hoarsely.

Donna fidgeted with her scarf before tossing it on the kitchen table. She obviously had overwhelmed him. "Yes. Did you pick one yet?"

"Um... no. Your brother brought over quite a selection."

"Yeah, my parents have a DVD player, but no DVDs. I'd wonder why they even have it, but I think Chris and Jen got if for them for Christmas."

Still feeling a bit shaken by Donna's frank confession, he set his mind to the task at hand. " _Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle_?" Josh lifted his eyebrow at Donna and she just shrugged and shook her head.

"Or how about _Independence Day_? In honor of the holiday?"

"Sure, but haven't you seen it?" Her expression was bewildered.

"Nope."

"How is that possible? I know you don't get out much..." She snickered, "but you do have cable."

"I just must have missed it somehow while I was busy getting an egghead governor from New Hampshire elected President of the United States. What about you?" He inquired as he was sliding the disc into the player.

"Yeah." She pursed her lips as she tried to remember. "I think I saw that with the good doctor in the theater. My treat, of course."

Josh stopped in mid-air and turned back to her. "Dr. Freeride?" She nodded and he immediately hit the eject button.

"What are you doing?"

"We'll pick something else." Covering her mouth with her hand, she tried to hide her amused grin from him. Grabbing the stack, he started listing off alternative titles. " _Chicago_... singing and dancing, I don't think so." He discarded it without getting her reaction. " _Love, Actually_... well that sounds just about as girly as you can get, next..." Donna just rolled her eyes. " _Bad Boys 2_..." His eyes lit up like a kid with a bag full of contraband candy as he looked at her hopefully.

"Seriously?" She leveled her you've-got-to-be-kidding gaze at him.

"Will Smith, Martin Lawrence..." He read off the box. "I know who they are. In fact I saw the first one. This will be good. Lots of manly action. You haven't seen it, have you?"

"No. I can safely say I have not seen it."

"So, we can watch it?"

"Sure," she acquiesced. No way could she refuse when he was that excited. Besides, he rarely got to see movies and she had the entire summer to watch the rest of them at her leisure. Alone. That thought suddenly made her chest constrict. He'd only been there just over 24 hours and she was already dreading his leaving. She liked having him there, even more than she thought she would. And that, right there, was exceeding some pretty high expectations.

Donna was seated on the couch her legs on the large ottoman in front of her. Josh was in the chair to her immediate right, so they could share the popcorn that he had managed not to burn in the microwave. However, they didn't get too far into the movie before they both realized it had been a very bad idea.

It was neither the first explosion nor the second one that got to Donna. It wasn't until the third explosion that she physically flinched and felt fear. Flashes started coming back to her. Outwardly, her face paled and she began to perspire. Inwardly, her heart was racing and she felt herself begin to shake.

On the fourth explosion, she gasped and Josh looked over at her and was horrified at what he saw. Immediately he stopped the DVD and was out of his chair and by her side. "I'm so sorry. That was so stupid of me. I, of all people, should have realized..."

"It's... its okay," she stuttered hoarsely.

"No, it isn't. Why didn't you tell me right away that it was bothering you?" He swept the back of his hand along her brow and felt the cold beads of perspiration.

"I didn't want it to bother me."

"Why?"

"I didn't want it to mean what it means." She looked down at her lap where she was wringing her hands together.

"Donna." He untangled her hands and took her left one in his. "It doesn't necessarily mean that. It just means you're not ready to watch cars exploding, that's all. Perfectly normal after what you've been through. Do you want to talk about it?"

"There's not much to talk about." He gave her a pointed look so she continued. "Seriously, I just see a flash and then the feeling that we were flying and then nothing. I try to remember, but it ends there."

"And you've felt that before? Or was this the first time?"

"I've felt it before... when I try to remember." She took a deep breath. "Please," her eyes pleaded with him, "can we just watch another movie? Tonight, I just want to watch a movie."

They sat in silence for over a minute. Finally, deciding it was best not to push her, he squeezed her hand, then got up and headed over to the stack of movies. He held up the case for _Love, Actually_. "I'm taking a stab in the dark here, but is this more what we're looking for?" She nodded so he began to read the back of the case

"According to this, there's a bunch of nancy Englishmen in this film. I'm willing to watch it, even though I know British men don't do manly films," he joked, trying to elicit a smile from her; he was rewarded for his efforts.

"Sean Connery does."

"True. However, he's Scottish and not in this film."

"That is true." She had to concede the point. "Colin Firth is in it, though, he's very manly."

"Okay, I don't even know what a Colin Firth is, but I know who Hugh Grant is and all I have to say is-- I rest my case."

Even as he insulted Hugh Grant, he loaded the disc and this time took a place on the other end of the couch, leaning against the armrest. From his new position he could watch her for any new signs of anxiety, although he doubted this love movie would elicit anything traumatic.

***

"Admit you liked it."

"I did not."

"You did too. I can tell."

"It was alright."

"Which story was your favorite?" He looked over at her like she'd spoken to him in an alien language he couldn't quite grasp. "Come on, I know you have a favorite."

He conceded with a sigh, "If I had to pick, I guess the one with the naked people. I liked that."

She pinched his toes. During the movie he'd ended up lounging on the far side of the couch and his sock covered feet had found their way to rest flush against her good leg. "You just like that one because there was a naked woman in it."

"Yes, I probably wouldn't have picked the naked people storyline if it had just been about naked men." He turned a suggestive smirk on her. "Maybe I wouldn't have picked the one with the naked woman at all, if someone had just taken me up on my offer to be their soaper this morning."

She looked at him with mock annoyance.

"I'm just saying." He shrugged innocently.

***

They'd been in their respective beds for less than an hour when he heard what sounded like a muffled whimper coming from Donna's room. When he heard a second sound, he immediately got out of bed and came to stand in her doorway. "Donna, are you okay?"

When she didn't respond, he made his way to the side of her bed and sat down. The room was dark, but there was enough light from the window that he could see her sleeping form. She was restless and mumbling; he recognized her as someone not having a good dream. "Donna." He raised his voice enough to hopefully rouse her, but not frighten her awake.

"No!" Donna's voice was clearly audible and she was still unconscious. He put a hand on each of her shoulders and shook her gently while saying her name again and again.

When she finally woke, she was panting. It took her a moment to realize where she was and to be able to focus on him. "What's going on?"

"You were dreaming." His voice was soft, but reassuring. "And, unless I'm mistaken, it wasn't a good one."

"I was?"

"You don't remember?"

"Not really." He heaved a sigh of relief on her behalf. She brought her hand up to rest on her chest. "But my heart rate is sky high, I'm out of breath and I feel a little jumpy." She took a deep breath and sat up slightly. "So either it was a bad dream or a really, really good one." She attempted a joke, but her voice was still weak enough to betray her.

"Are you okay now?" One of his hands rested on her waist while he ran the knuckles of the other one gently up and down her cheek.

She nodded carefully. She was okay, but she really didn't want to be alone.

As if reading her mind, he asked, "Do you want me to stay here until you fall back asleep?"

"Uh... huh," she whispered, feeling half-relieved and half-ashamed that she needed him so much.

He scooted farther onto the bed so he could put his arms around her. "I'm so sorry I put that movie on, Donna, I really am so sorry."

She swallowed the lump in her throat. "Josh, please don't, it was bound to happen sometime. I'm just..."

"What?" He asked softly.

"I'm just glad that when it did happen, you were here."

He hugged her a little bit tighter to him.

***

It was bright. Even though his eyes were still closed, he could tell that it was bright. Although he wasn't sure if it was the light or the sound of a door slamming that had woken him. If he'd been more awake, that thought would have alarmed him. His mouth was dry so he tried swallowing several times in order to improve its condition; that was not an uncommon phenomenon as he was waking. But as he came further into consciousness, he realized that there was something very uncommon about this particular morning. He wasn't alone. Without opening his eyes he knew he was laying stretched out on his side, and he was fairly certain his left arm was draped protectively over something warm... or rather, someone warm.

Struggling, he forced one eye open. Blonde hair. Lots of it right in front of him, inches from his face. Donna. He was in bed with Donna. His heart lurched; part of him thought he should panic, but he didn't. Actually, he felt very content. Slowly, he let his one squinting eye wander down her body. She had a T-shirt on. He glanced down at himself; so did he. They had clothes on, that was good. Or bad, depending on how you looked at it. Opening both eyes now, he spotted the window that was allowing in the offending light. Pink curtains. Or rather, curtains with pink flowers on them. He didn't have pink flowered curtains, did he? Then he remembered. Gaza, Germany, Wisconsin. This was Donna's old room at her parents' house. The movie, her nightmare-- he had only meant to stay until she fell asleep. Apparently, he'd stayed a little longer than that. Like all night.

Josh wondered what time it was. He could look at his watch to find out, but that would mean moving his arm from around Donna. Weighing his options, he decided he wasn't prepared to move his arm just yet. He'd just have to remain ignorant about the time. That was okay, because he was in bed with Donna and nothing could have prepared him for how right it felt. God, he hoped it was a precursor of mornings to come in the not-too-distant future.

Donna was lying flat on her back; it was the way she'd slept every night since her accident. Even though she'd never been comfortable sleeping that way before she was injured, it was a position that had become very familiar by necessity. What wasn't familiar was feeling the weight of something across her waist. Was the cat lying on her? Must be. "Shoo," she muttered. Even to Donna's half-conscious ears, the sound was feeble. She knew it wouldn't be enough to faze either of her parents' intrepid cats. Not that the weight caused an unpleasant feeling, because it didn't. She was feeling unusually comfortable this morning, and she'd slept soundly. But she still didn't trust whichever cat it was not to jump on either her leg or her chest; both were still tender from her injuries.

"Shoo!" She tried again, a little louder. This time as she said it, she swept her right hand down in order to knock the cat safely off towards the far side of her body. However, her hand hit flesh instead of fur. Forcing her eyes open, she surveyed her midsection. An arm. A masculine arm. Grabbing the arm, she brought it closer to her face. It was Josh's arm. She knew it without even turning her face towards where he must by lying next to her. She'd recognize his hands anywhere.

"Hi." There was a trace of amusement in his voice even though it was still a bit groggy from sleep.

She turned her head towards him. Brown eyes, ones that she had looked into a thousand times, were fixed on her. This morning they were full of something she'd never seen before. She didn't know exactly what it was, but their intensity made her feel lightheaded and a little floopy. If she had fantasized about this scenario, and let's be honest, she had, on a multitude of occasions, she imagined herself confident and cool. A sophisticate. However, she turned out to be a little more overwhelmed than she'd predicted at unexpectedly waking up in Josh's arms. So she said the only thing that came to mind. "You're not a cat."

"Astute observation." His voice was low and almost raspy as his mouth twitched upwards. That hadn't been what he'd expected her to say.

"I thought you were a cat."

"I'm not sure how to respond to that, Donna, being that I'm very obviously not a cat."

She smiled across the less than six inches that separated their faces. "Are you sure? Because when I feel something lying across me while I'm in my parents' house, then I'm pretty sure it couldn't be anything but a cat."

Glancing down, he looked to where she was still holding onto his hand in front of her. He twisted his wrist slightly so he could lace his fingers with those of her right hand. He ran his thumb slowly up and down hers several times before speaking. "See... opposable thumbs. Cats do not have opposable thumbs. Therefore, I am clearly not a cat."

He brought his eyes back up to meet hers again and she could feel his stare all the way down to her toes. "Clearly." She took a deep breath before questioning, "You stayed?"

***

Jen cringed as the screen door banged shut as she exited her in-laws' house. She hadn't meant to let it slam and make so much noise.

"So?" Chris asked as she climbed in the passenger seat of the running car.

"Um... they were still sleeping."

"Sleeping? It's 8:30. Donna never sleeps that late. Ever. Not as long as I've known her, and that, as you know, has been the length of her entire life."

"Well, with Josh visiting, it's sort of like a vacation, I guess," Jen tried as a way of explanation. She wasn't sure her husband needed to know the details of the, quite frankly, precious scene that she had wandered in on moments before.

"Why didn't you wake her? I'm sure she'd want to come to breakfast with us."

Apparently, Jen was going to have to clue him in on what she'd witnessed. "Because she deserves rest and *they* looked peaceful."

"They looked peaceful?" Sounding mighty confused, he emphasized the word 'they' just as his wife had.

"Like two peas in a pod."

"Two peas in a pod!" Chris exclaimed and hit the brakes. He was about to put the car into reverse and head back down the street when Jen put her hand on his arm.

"Chris." Her voice was firm, but contained an air of calm. "Let's go to breakfast."

"But?"

"No," she said a bit more forcefully and shook her head. "None of our business."

He inhaled quickly and mumbled something under his breath, but he did put the vehicle in drive.

Tina piped up from the back seat. "What's none of our business?"

"If it's none of our business, that means we don't ask questions about it, honey." Jen turned to scold her daughter gently.

After a minute or two of huffy silence, Chris chose his words carefully. "Did the peas, um... still have their shells on?"

Jen looked at him thoughtfully and decided it was too much fun not to provoke him. "Well, it's hard to say... what do you mean by 'shells on'?"

"You know. Did they have shells or were the peas, you know, shucked?"

Jen burst out laughing. "I'm not a voyeur, darling. I didn't stay to check out the state of the peas, but it appeared to be more of a pod-sharing arrangement rather than an if-this-pod's-a-rockin'-don't-come-a-knockin' situation."

"This is not funny." Chris glanced at her as he drove. The freckles on his nose and cheeks stood out in bright relief against his even paler-than-usual skin.

"Yes, it is. It's hysterical, and by the way, it's absolutely wonderful. And I'm thrilled and you would be too if you let go of your overprotective routine for a minute."

He just grunted in response.

She spoke gently. "You don't need to make up for the last six years of not being able to be much of a big brother to her during the short months she's here. You should just enjoy spending time with her while we can."

Chris opened his mouth and then closed it again, obviously having trouble formulating his thoughts. He exhaled and tried again. "It's just the last time... I knew that guy was a jerk and I didn't do anything. If he had known he would have had to answer to me, maybe the whole thing wouldn't have happened. And she wouldn't have been so hurt... and maybe she wouldn't have left."

"I don't think this is anything like that situation, Chris."

He glanced over at her before admitting, "I know. You're right."

She surveyed him curiously for several long seconds. "This is a side I've not really seen from you." She glanced to the backseat at her daughter and then let her eyes wander back to him and sighed. "I'm totally going to have my hands full dealing with you in about five years, aren't I?"

"Five years?!" His voice was a screech and he whipped his head over to glare at her. "What do you mean, five years?!"

"You're a high school teacher." She lowered her voice. "Girls start dating around fifteen. You know this."

"No, I don't." Now he stared straight ahead as he drove. "I don't know anything of the kind. That is not going to happen. Ten years, maybe. Not five. Out of the question."

Jen just chuckled and patted him on the arm.

***

Josh contemplated her question. He had stayed, that much was evidenced by the fact that they had woken up in her bed. Together. "I must have fallen asleep." His expression was cautious, but he didn't let go of her hand, which was still linked with his and resting on her stomach. "Is that okay?"

"Yeah." As they lay side by side on the bed, only inches separated their noses. It occurred to Donna that it felt like one of the most truly intimate moments that she'd ever shared with Josh. Or with anyone, for that matter. She squeezed his hand. "It's okay. Definitely okay."

They fell into a comfortable silence. Josh shifted his right arm up so that he could prop his head on his hand. He studied her intently from his newly elevated position before speaking. "I didn't mean to ignore what you said last night."

"Huh?" Donna was genuinely confused.

"Last night. When you told me about your conversation with CJ, I was listening to what you said. I just didn't know how to respond. I didn't want you to think I was ignoring you. I'm not ignoring you."

"Oh... well, I guess I didn't think you were ignoring me, precisely..."

"Good," he interjected quickly. "Because I wasn't. Because ignoring you would not be following the never-take-Donna-for-granted-ever-again plan. I'm still all about that plan, by the way."

She rewarded him with a small smile. "I'm glad you have this plan, but maybe it should be the try-not-to-take-Donna-for-granted-as-much plan. Never and ever-again are a long time and a tall order. You might have more success with something that allows for some slip-ups."

He shook his head slightly. "You don't understand, Donna. I don't want to do this halfway." His voice was soft and his eyes were suddenly piercing through her. "I thought I knew what scared was."

"What?"

"Before... before, I thought I knew what it was to be scared. I didn't know."

"Oh." Her voice barely registered. "You mean... before the... before I was..."

"Hurt. Before you were hurt. Before I heard the words come out of CJ's mouth telling me there was an explosion in Gaza. Until that moment I really didn't know, not really. The other bad things that have happened to people I care about have been quick and shocking. Even when my dad was diagnosed with cancer, I was more worried than scared. I really thought he would get treatment and get better. But with you, I was just so... scared."

"Josh..." His name came out in a hushed tone that was barely above a whisper and her expression was soft. She felt tears burning behind her already bright eyes.

"There were so many moments when I thought I'd lost you..." His voice choked with emotion, but he didn't stop speaking. "Right after Andi told Toby you were in the car... panicked moments when I couldn't find out any information...walking into your empty hospital room..." He paused at that most terrifying moment; the anxiety began to rise in his chest once again, just at the memory.

The first of Donna's tears had begun to leak out of the corners of her eyes, leaving wet tracks on her cheeks. Josh tried, unsuccessfully, to swallow the hard lump that had formed in his own throat and took a deep breath to try and relieve the pressure on his chest before he continued. "There are things I wanted to tell you then; things that would have been inappropriate to say under the circumstances. Hell, I don't know, maybe they're still inappropriate. But at the very least I need you to know how important you are to me. Both professionally and personally. Do you have any idea, Donnatella Moss, how much you mean to me?"

Now the tears were freely flowing out of her eyes and soaking the pillowcase. "I think I'm beginning to get an inkling." Her voice was choked and she had to untangle her hand from his so that she could try and wipe the overflowing tears from her eyes.

He brought his newly free hand up to cup the side of her face. "I'm serious, I don't know what I would have done if it had been the worst. And that's why I don't want to take you for granted ever again. So I want you to know that I heard what you were saying last night. You're right, I have wanted you to stay put for personal reasons, just as you've stayed working for me for personal reasons." He tucked golden strands of hair behind her ear as he spoke. "But we're going to figure out the professional and find something that works. That's the easy part."

"What's the hard part?" She asked softly.

"Everything else."

"You think it's going to be hard?" Her voice was little more than a husky whisper.

He paused for a moment. "Maybe not hard, just new, uncharted territory." A smile quirked at his lips. "But fear not, Donnatella, for I am an explorer and uncharted territory is my middle-"

"You're not an explorer," she interrupted, trying-- and failing-- not to smile. She was still attempting to wipe the moisture from her face.

"I am," he said proudly.

"You're not. You couldn't even find that restaurant near Embassy Row... and I even Mapquested it for you."

"I found it before the meeting," he defended.

"After you called me three times and I finally had to talk you in..." She pressed her lips together to keep from giggling.

"If that's the way you remember it." Shaking his head, he quickly changed the subject. "I think somebody needs a shower." He arched his eyebrows at her suggestively.

"Somebody does need a shower."

"So?"

"No, Josh. No soaping today, either."

***

The showering process went quickly and by the time Chris, Jen and the kids stopped by again after breakfast, both Josh and Donna were dressed and in the kitchen. Neither Jen nor Chris mentioned the part about stopping by earlier, or the part about Jen finding the two of them in Donna's bed, sleeping.

"Where's the peas?" Tom asked as everyone gathered in the kitchen.

"What?" Donna asked her nephew curiously as both Chris and Jen froze.

"Mom and Dad said they saw peas in a pod here. I want peas in a pod. My turtles like to eat peas; I can feed them when I get home."

Donna glanced around the kitchen. "I'm pretty sure we don't have any peas..." She looked between her brother and sister-in-law. "You saw peas here?" Chris just stared back at her with wide eyes; at least Jen managed a shrug before Donna continued. "I think we have some broccoli. Do your turtles eat broccoli?"

"No, they eat peas and they eat lettuce and..."

"I'm sure there's some lettuce in the fridge." Donna indicated with a point.

Jen recovered herself and put her hands on her son's shoulders. "Tommy, we have plenty for your turtles to eat at home. You don't need to go through Grandma and Grandpa's refrigerator looking for vegetables."

"So are we going to watch fireworks at the park tonight?" Donna asked her niece and nephew excitedly.

Both Tommy and Tina yelled their approval and Chris and Jen both sighed with relief at not having to explain the whole peas in a pod thing.

"Is it still like I remember?" Donna asked, and as the kids were excitedly relating all the things to do at the park to their aunt, Josh slipped over and had a private word with Chris. In turn, Chris whispered to Jen.

"Okay, kids, let's go feed those turtles."

Once Jen and the kids had cleared out, Donna looked back and forth between her brother and Josh. Chris spoke. "I'm thinking it might be better if we all stayed here tonight."

"Why?" She pouted. "I used to love going to Warner Park when we were kids."

"Well, there will be all those people."

"I know... lots of people around. That makes it fun."

"Lots of people who have seen your picture in the paper..."

"I can handle that. I'll wear a baseball cap."

"You'll be in a wheelchair." Her brother looked at her pointedly. "You won't be much disguised."

"We can't not go; Tina and Tom will be disappointed. All their friends will be there," she pointed out.

"They'll be fine."

Looking at Chris, Josh piped up, "Why don't you and Jen take the kids and Donna and I will watch them from here?"

"Josh, no, I really want to go." She looked at him imploringly.

Josh met Chris' eye and nodded his head, trying to indicate for him to give them a minute. Miraculously, Chris took the hint and wandered into the living room. "Donna." He took her hand and squatted so he was eye level with her as she sat in a chair. "I don't want to spoil anything, but I'm a little bit worried about the fireworks."

"What do you mean?"

He bit his lip and ran his thumb over her palm. "Well, they're essentially explosions and if we're right there with all the light and sound, it might be... traumatic for you."

"Oh... right. I didn't think of that." She furrowed her brow with disappointment. "You think they'll... like last night?"

"I don't know, but it might just be more relaxing to watch them here." He looked over at Chris and raised his voice. "We can see them from the backyard, right?"

"Absolutely. A pretty good view over the lake, actually. I'd rather watch 'em from here anyway."

Donna shook her head vehemently. "No. I'll stay, but you have to take the kids to the park. They'll be too disappointed if they miss that."

Chris glanced at Josh and then back down to Donna. "How about we all go over for the carnival and the concerts and other festivities this afternoon, and then I can bring you two back after we eat."

Josh gauged Donna's reaction. "Sound good?"

She smiled, finally satisfied. "Yeah, that sounds like a good 4th of July."

***

"Don't you have to get here super early to get a spot like this?" Donna asked her brother as she took in the prime real estate that they were to occupy at Warner Park. There were people set up everywhere in the expansive park, but they had arrived to find that a canopy with blankets and lawn chairs underneath was already set up at an ideal location, right off one of the sidewalks that wound through the park. The kids had already run into friends on the walk over and were now off playing, and the sounds of a band performing somewhere nearby filled the air.

"What's the point of coaching a hundred teenage boys if he didn't abuse his power a little every once and awhile?" Jen shot Chris a pointed look.

"It's not abusing my power." He glanced between Josh and Donna as he explained, "I had several of my freshmen from last year get here at 6am and stake out the area."

Donna turned a horrified expression on him at the thought of him using his players for such a purpose.

"What? I'm letting each of them out of one practice during two-a-days. Trust me; they jumped to volunteer for this."

"Sounds like a sweet deal for you." An interested Josh joked with Chris, "Do they mow lawns and wash cars? Maybe I should have been a high school coach."

Donna turned a sardonic smile on him. "What would you have coached, Josh? Debate? I don't know how helpful those kids would be when it comes to manual labor."

"Hey, I played sports in high school." He scowled at her.

"Yes, I know." She looked at her brother and Jen. "He rowed. Big sport amongst the fancy boys and Ivy League prep school types."

"Rowed? It was called Crew, thank you very much."

"Oh, that explains it!" Jen looked him up and down while nodding her head thoughtfully.

"Explains what?" Donna asked with careful curiosity.

"The arms." Jen pointed to where Josh's bicep was peaking out from beneath his short-sleeved shirt.

"What? What about his arms?" Donna regarded her dubiously. Of course, she was a big faker. She'd noticed Josh's arms on countless occasions. She used to love it when he would change for a jogging meeting in his office, because then he'd hang around in a tank top for half the day. Though, she was pretty sure that he used to do that on purpose, in order to torment her. Now that Jen was calling her attention to them, she remembered how his arms, or at least arm, had been draped over her this morning. Just the thought of it sent a shiver down her spine. Yeah, these were all things Josh's ego didn't need to know.

Jen crossed to Josh and pushed up the sleeve of his brown t-shirt so that his arm was exposed from the shoulder down. "See?" She pointed again. "It makes sense, because how else does a Washington suit get arms like that?"

"I never noticed, let me see." Donna reached out her hand towards them. Jen dragged Josh towards her so Donna could cop a feel from her perch in the wheelchair. For Josh's part, he was stunned into inaction, and Chris just snickered at the dazed expression on his face. Donna academically swept her hand over his bicep, up to his shoulder and back again. When she spoke, her tone was thoughtful, as if she were approving a grapefruit or a melon for purchase. It didn't betray the thrill she felt at caressing him in such a manner. "I guess your arms are sufficient..."

Suddenly Josh realized that Donna was going to have to stop running her hand lightly up and down his arm, or he was going to have an embarrassing problem in short order. Part of him was marveling that with Donna, that was all it took, while the other part of him knew he had to get out of her reach... now. "Hey..." Quickly he stood up and shook her off while managing to complain playfully, "stop handling me like I'm some piece of meat. I'm a man, leave me some dignity."

"I think you'll find that when these two get going, you need to be comfortable with just leaving your dignity at the door." Chris nodded his head sympathetically.

"That's becoming apparent," Josh mumbled before changing the subject. "There's a beer garden?" He pointed to the huge Miller Beer Garden sign at the far side of the park as he surveyed their surroundings and tried to think of anything but the way Donna's hand had felt gliding against his skin. "That sounds like a garden I might actually want to spend some time in."

Donna smiled up at him. How could she help it? Because not only had she been able to engage in a quick round of arm fondling, but he was also wearing shorts again. Lots of reasons to smile this afternoon. "You know what they also have in the beer garden?"

"A malt-liquor fountain?"

She made a face to show that she didn't think he was funny, even though she secretly really did, and shook her head. "Cheese."

"Cheese? What... like trees made of cheese?"

"No, like vendors who sell cheese. Cheese curds, to be precise."

"Cheese curds? Do I want to even know what a cheese curd is?"

"Isn't this supposed to be your cheese vacation? Cheese curds would definitely have to be on the itinerary of any serious Wisconsin cheese vacationer."

"Well, that is why I'm here, isn't it?" He smirked down at her, finally recovered from the arm-touching incident.

"That's what I was led to believe. No other reason for you to make the trip." She shrugged theatrically.

"Exactly, I can't think of another reason to have come this far." His eyes bore through her and she felt it down to her toes. "So I guess my cheese education should begin. What exactly is a cheese curd?"

"A curd is cheese that squeaks."

"Huh?" Josh looked horrified.

"Fresh, young Cheddar in its natural form before its aged and processed into blocks. And they're kind of slippery and squeaky."

Josh made a face. "Do I have to? I don't think I like slippery, squeaky foods."

"No cheese vacation would be complete if you didn't try them. They're good," she said knowingly.

"What if I admit that the whole cheese vacation thing was just a clever ruse to misdirect you from the real purpose of this trip?" Josh felt his heart begin to thump loudly in his chest.

"Which was?" Her voice was filled with laughter and hope and her eyes never left his.

"I wanted to meet Shadrach and Meshach. You know how crazy for cats I am."

"You hate cats."

"I do?" He feigned a puzzled expression.

"Yes."

"Oh... I must be crazy for something else then."

Donna blushed to the roots of her hair; her complexion grew even redder when she realized that Chris and Jen were unabashedly watching them with amusement from their lawn chairs on the other side of the canopy.

***

As the afternoon progressed, it was Grand Central Station at the Moss's spot in the park. Not only were Jen and Chris apparently very popular teachers and members of the community, but it seemed that anyone who had ever met Donna stopped by to give their regards as well. Friends of her parents whom she hadn't seen since she was a child, former classmates and acquaintances, as well as ex-co-workers from the numerous jobs she'd held while a resident of the town. She was surprised to find herself something of a local celebrity, but of course, she'd garnered a lot of media attention after the incident in Gaza, especially in her hometown, and this was her first public appearance. But true to her personality, she sat in her wheelchair under the sunshade and gamely greeted everyone who wanted an audience with her.

Jen proved to be quite skilled at ushering people away when she felt their time was up. But now she was ushering someone towards her. "Donna, look who I found."

She glanced up and braced herself for more small talk with people she barely remembered, but broke into a broad smile as she realized whom Jen had with her. "Mrs. Morello! How wonderful. How are you?"

Mrs. Morello advanced towards her and bent over to give her a quick hug hello before sitting in the lawn chair next to her. "Donna, what a relief to see you looking so well. I've been so worried about you. How are you doing?"

"My recovery is ongoing, but the last two weeks I've definitely been feeling improvement." She smiled reassuringly. "I'm doing okay." The two women sat for several minutes chatting. Mrs. Morello insisted that Donna call her Molly, which was a difficult request for Donna to successfully accede, but she promised to try.

"I want you to meet my... my..." Donna was momentarily tongue-tied. What was Josh to her again? Oh, yeah. "My boss, Josh Lyman. He's over..." She found him with her eyes and waved him over, "playing Frisbee with the kids. He's the one who had the President call you."

"Josh, I want you to meet Molly Morello, my-"

"Your AP English teacher," he supplied quickly with a broad smile. "Don't get up," he added hastily as he crossed towards her and shook her hand. "How do you do? It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Donna tells me that you're the one who had the President call me."

Now Josh turned a little red. "Oh no, that was all Donna."

"Josh..." She drew out his name and then turned back to Mrs. Morello. "He did. He wrote a briefing memo on you and everything."

"It was important to Donna. Things that are important to Donna have a way of becoming important to me." They locked eyes for a long moment, oblivious to their audience. Josh felt something tug on his heart as he wondered for about the hundredth time that weekend why it had taken a tragedy to get him to confront this.

They chatted with Mrs. Morello for several more minutes, until she announced that they were about to start up in the bingo tent and she couldn't miss it. Apparently, she was a bit of a gambler in her retirement.

As Mrs. Morello made her exit, Jen decided that they needed ice cream and promptly sent the boys with the kids to the beer garden in search of some.

***

"So..." Jen said slowly once they were alone.

"Yeah?" Donna replied, equally as slow.

"This morning."

"What about it?"

"I stopped by to see if you and Josh wanted to go to breakfast with us."

"You did? When?" Donna knit her eyebrows together, trying to remember such a visit.

"While you were *both* still sleeping. I didn't want to wake... either of you."

"Oh!" Donna's eyebrows shot up as she realized what Jen must have witnessed.

"Yeah. I assume you weren't sleeping together, but rather sleep-touching?" Jen asked, harkening back to the hand-touching conversation the day before.

Donna emitted a chuckle as she tried to explain. "We didn't mean to... he didn't mean to... we fell asleep..."

"Uh-huh." Jen nodded with a sly grin. "A lot can happen in a couple of days."

"He's leaving tomorrow." Donna swallowed the out-of-nowhere lump that had gathered in her throat and looked at her sister-in-law.

"I know," Jen replied quietly.

"I don't want him to go." Her voice was small.

"I know that, too." Jen took a deep breath. "You should tell him that."

"Why? He has to go back." Her voice held resignation.

"Yes, but if knew he was invited for more than cheese, he might come back."

"He knows. But he's very busy; he's got important things to do in D.C."

"Never hurts to say it, though. And I think you might be underestimating how important something that's currently here is to him." Jen looked at her pointedly, but Donna just nodded and stared into the grass.

***

Josh was taking in the sights and sounds of the festival as they walked, and would have to admit, if pressed, that Madison put on a pretty impressive party. He was also impressed with the number of people who greeted Chris as they walked. Apparently being a high school football coach made him something of a big shot, but he guessed, remembering the wall of trophies, it also didn't hurt that he'd been a local football star as well.

"So this thing with my sister, you're serious about it, aren't you?"

Furtively, Josh looked first to the left and then to the right as they walked, but there was no way to escape. He glanced over at Chris and decided to just have the conversation. "Yes, I'm afraid I am."

Chris was silent for several moments. "I'm sorry if I was a little hard on you when you got here Friday. You can hardly blame me for being suspicious of your motives, though. A boss coming all this way for his assistant just didn't seem normal."

Sighing, Josh admitted, "Donna and I have never been normal."

"Well, she's obviously really happy when you're around, so you're okay in my book."

"Really? Even if I'm a doofus?" Josh asked, repeating Tommy's words with a grin.

Chris was startled, but recovered nicely. "Uh, sure, even if you're a doofus. Don't be so hard on yourself, Lyman. Apparently my sister likes doofuses."

***

After they'd completed their ice cream errand, Chris had spotted Jen talking with some friends, so he and the kids headed off toward her. When Josh returned, he found that Donna had yet another visitor. This time it was a man; a man who was kneeling down in front of her, making her laugh. He hastened his pace.

"Are you sure it was Homecoming?"

"Of course, I wouldn't forget something like that..."

"Hi." Josh interrupted as he walked up, a spot of tension clouding his face.

"Oh, Josh." She reached up to take the ice cream he was handing her. "Thank you, chocolate... excellent." She took a spoonful before beginning the introduction. "This is Josh Lyman-"

"Your boss?" The man had stood up when Josh interrupted them, but now looked down at Donna curiously for confirmation. Josh studied him; he was about six feet tall with dark brown, almost black hair and dark eyes. He supposed he would be the type that Donna would find handsome.

"Yes." Donna seemed surprised. "How did you know that?"

"It's been mentioned in the articles that you work for him." Donna nodded; that was true. Almost every mention of Donna had included the fact that she worked for Josh.

The man turned back to Josh and offered his hand. "How do you do?" Not knowing what else to do, Josh took it.

"This is... what are you going by now?" Donna's tone was teasing.

"Rick, I'm going by Rick. Actually, I was going to ask you about him, I had no idea he would be here and I could meet him in person."

"Oh, why were you going to ask about Josh?" Donna eyed him curiously.

"Well you know I'm an-"

"Standing right here," Josh interjected.

"Oh, of course, Mr. Lyman. May I call you Josh?" Josh just glared at him. "Okay, Mr. Lyman it is. I'm an Assistant D.A. here in Madison and I have an excellent prosecutorial record..." Josh visibly relaxed; this guy was a lawyer, not a doctor. For some reason he'd irrationally thought-well, it didn't matter what he'd thought, because he was wrong. And the man was still talking. "...I got life for the milkbox murderer, I don't know if you heard about that case?" Josh shook his head. "No problem, I can get you news clippings, it was quite a high-profile case, I assure you-"

"Rick," Josh interrupted. "I'm sorry, but what the hell are we talking about?"

"You're in charge of congressional recruiting for the White House, aren't you, Mr. Lyman?"

Oh. Now Josh understood. One of Donna's old high school buddies wanted to be a politician. "Yes, I am. You can call me Josh."

"Okay, Josh, I'm very active in the Wisconsin Democratic Party and I have reason to believe that the Wisconsin 2nd is going to be an open race in two years."

"Baldwin?" Donna questioned with surprise.

"Word has it she's eyeing the Governor's mansion."

"Really. I hadn't heard that." Josh furrowed his brow.

Rick nodded his confirmation quickly. "Now, I'd like to position myself as a viable candidate for her seat. I went to UW for undergrad and Yale Law-"

"Yale Law? Me, too," Josh interrupted.

"Yes, I know." Rick nodded emphatically, but continued his pitch. "I've been a prosecutor here for six years, am active in the community: downtown revitalization, lake conservation..."

"I see. That is something we can talk about. But right now," Josh smiled down at Donna, "I'm on vacation, so we'll have to get into it another time."

"Vacation? Oh. You and Donna..." He pointed between the two of them, his eyes registering his surprise. "I see, you two are together? The articles didn't mention that."

"No, the articles wouldn't have mentioned anything," Josh agreed. Neither Josh nor Donna realized the hallmark that had just passed. Someone new had questioned their relationship, and for the first time, neither one made any excuses or issued any denials. They didn't confirm it, either, but it was still progress.

"I see. Well, my wife Kristie and I were planning to be in D.C. in September; perhaps we could talk then. I know you'll still be concentrating on this year's midterms, but..."

"No, that sounds fine." He patted his pocket. "I'm not sure I actually have any cards with me. Vacation and all."

Donna leaned down and grabbed her purse. "I have some." After rummaging for a second, she pulled out two cards. "Here's both my card and Josh's card." She handed them over.

Rick handed his card to both of them in kind. "Perhaps the four of us can have dinner when we're in town?"

Josh looked to Donna who smiled her agreement. "I'm sure that would be fun."

"Great. It was a pleasure to meet you." Rick shook his hand before leaning down to give Donna a quick hug. "Donna, best of luck with the recovery, you look terrific."

"Thanks, Freddy," Donna called as he walked away.

Josh froze. It took several seconds for him to recover, but when he did, he fumbled with the card Rick had just given him. While he squinted at the name on the card, it came together for him. "Fredrick Briggs. I thought his name was Rick?" Josh asked, already knowing the answer to the question.

"Yes, Rick is short for Fredrick. I think he thinks it sounds more professional than Freddy."

Josh stared at her blankly, his mouth open, for several long seconds. "I just agreed to meet with the guy you lost your virginity to?" He asked incredulously.

"It appears so. Yes." Donna pressed her lips together to keep from smiling.

"The guy who stole your sweet innocence wants me to help him become a United States Congressman?"

Now Donna flat-out laughed. "My 'sweet innocence'?"

"Why didn't you tell me that was him when you introduced us?"

Donna looked at him like he had lost his mind. "Are you serious? What did you want me to say? Rick, this is Josh. Josh, this is Rick, formerly Freddy, the boy that de-flowered me at sixteen."

"Yes, for future reference, that is exactly what I want you to say!"

She shook her head, vastly amused by his demand. "Well, it's unlikely that the situation where I have to introduce you to anyone that I lost my virginity to is ever going to arise again. Since, you know, it happened, just that one time. Except..."

"Except what?"

"Well... I'm not sure he was my first."

"What?!" It came out somewhere between a screech and a whine.

"That's what we were trying to figure out when you walked up."

Josh covered his ears with his hands and walked in small circles. "Okay, are you trying to kill me? Is that what you are trying to do? Because you're very close to succeeding."

Donna giggled at his theatrics. "Josh, I'm kidding. He was my first. I'm sure."

He let his hands fall to his sides, and stopped and stared at her for a second. "I'm not having dinner with him..." Narrowing his eyes, he regarded her suspiciously. "You don't seriously expect me to have dinner with him, do you?"

"You were starting to like him before you knew who he was. I could tell."

"I thought he was a buddy of yours, not your ex-lover."

"My lover?" Donna was giggling almost uncontrollably now. "Josh, it was fifteen years ago. He's a good guy. Married, two kids. Upstanding citizen. What's the big deal? You wouldn't refuse to consider him... just because of that, would you?"

"No. But that doesn't mean I have to have dinner with him!"

"Sixteen, Josh."

"I bet you were adorable at sixteen." Josh stated, suddenly distracted by the image of a sixteen-year-old Donna.

She hesitated a second before switching gears and smiling seductively at him. "I was adorable at sixteen. If by adorable, you mean a bit gangly and a bit awkward."

"I do. I think gangly and awkward are adorable." He wagged his eyebrows at her. "I still do."

Her bright smile turned into a slight frown. "What is that supposed to mean? You think I'm still gangly and awkward? I'm not. I'm very graceful."

"You are graceful." He wore a cheeky grin. "I didn't say you weren't graceful. I said I found gangly and awkward adorable, I didn't say I thought you were gangly and awkward."

She stuck her lip out in a pout. "You don't think I'm adorable?"

He had never in his life wanted to kiss somebody as badly as he did at that very moment. Press his lips to hers and kiss the pout right off her face. It took every ounce of self-restraint he possessed to keep from doing it. "I think, quite possibly, under the right circumstance and in the right light, I could find something to adore about you."

A blush crept up Donna's neck and her heart skipped a beat. When you're fishing for compliments, it follows that you shouldn't be that affected by them when they come your way. But that didn't matter, and it didn't matter what he said, because it was the tone of his voice and the way he looked at her. He absolutely took her breath away.

***

Josh rummaged through the fridge while Donna watched him from her seat at the kitchen table. "Dessert... dessert..." he muttered under his breath. "I saw some ice cream in the freezer..."

"We had ice cream earlier at the park."

"I thought ice cream never got old?" Josh asked, glancing back at her with amusement.

"It doesn't, but..."

"You barely touched your ice cream earlier, anyway. You let it melt while you were distracted by your lover."

"If you call Freddy my lover one more time, I'm going to be forced to give you the gory details of that glorious evening."

Josh stopped and slowly turned to stare at her. "Glorious?"

Donna turned a dreamy expression on him as she sighed contentedly. "Well, he was pretty hot back-"

"Okay," Josh interrupted, holding his hands in the air in defeat. "I won't call him your lover again... tonight, anyway."

"'Kay." She pressed her lips together to prevent a smile as he went back to rummaging for food.

"Strawberries!" Josh triumphantly pulled a plastic container out of the fridge to show her.

Donna smiled widely. "Perfect. And my mom already cleaned those if they're in the Tupperware."

Looking pleased with himself, Josh pulled the lid out and held the bowl out to her. "How 'bout that? I cooked."

"You... cooked?" She raised her eyebrow at him.

"Sure. I found food and now I'm serving it. Isn't that cooking?"

Donna stared at him blankly for a moment before popping a small strawberry into her mouth. "Yeah, Josh, you're a regular Julia Child."

***

The Moss's cushioned redwood love seat from the deck was already placed on the lawn, facing the lake and in the direction of the impending fireworks. Once he had gotten Donna situated, Josh grabbed a small side table from the deck and set it on the lawn next to her. He dropped onto it a radio, the strawberries, and everything else Donna had instructed him to grab from the house.

"Lee Greenwood?" Josh asked, trying not to laugh as he got settled next to her. He was incredibly aware that he was wearing shorts and that the naked skin of his right leg was brushing against the also-bare flesh of her left leg.

"Yes," Donna replied without embarrassment as she took a bite of a strawberry. Josh was instantly mesmerized by the progress of her lips around the ripe fruit.

"That 'proud to be an American' song?" He managed to ask, even as he stared at a drop of strawberry juice that was now trailing down her chin. He wondered what she would do if he leaned over and licked it off.

"Uh-huh." She smiled.

"If you don't hear that song, it will ruin your 4th of July?" He asked disbelievingly, as he reached over and wiped away the strawberry juice on the side of her chin with his thumb.

"It's a very patriotic song, Josh." Donna quickly swiped the back of her hand across her face.

"But will it ruin your holiday?"

"Well... that might be overstating it a bit, but I find it spoils my firework-viewing experience if they don't play the right music with the fireworks. If they haven't played that song by the start of the finale, then I know they're not going to, and then I can't enjoy the finale, which, of course, is the best part. The whole thing ends up being disappointing," she explained as she picked up the radio from the table and began to tune it to the station that was simulcasting the music from the park.

"I didn't know you had such affection for Mr. Greenwood. Maybe we shouldn't turn the radio on, then." A hint of a smirk played at his lips.

She stared at him as if he had just announced that he'd become a card-carrying member of the Republican Party. "We can't not listen. The whole show is choreographed to the music, especially the finale."

If he found fault with the logic that compelled her to listen to music that might potentially ruin the show for her, he didn't mention it. "Then I certainly hope they play the right music, because I wouldn't want your 4th of July spoiled."

Setting the radio back on the table, she stared out directly in front of her. "It won't spoil my 4th of July." She glanced over at him before adding shyly, "Nothing could spoil this 4th of July."

Their eyes locked and he felt a jolt. Letting his eyes roam over her, he decided the only word that adequately described her this evening was luminescent. Her alabaster skin positively glowed in the dusky light; he wanted to touch every inch of it. Her hair hung in soft golden waves around her shoulders and he imagined what it would be like to tangle his hands in and draw her to him. And her lips. Her lips were red and plump from the strawberries and just begging to be kissed.

As he stared at her in the half-darkness, it was hard to imagine a time when he hadn't wanted to kiss her, wanted to be with her. Had there ever truly been such a time? Before he met her... but other than that? Probably not. He'd just kept his desire buried and locked away, out of reach. Suddenly, he marveled at how they'd managed to get anything done over the last six years. Because in light of the way he was feeling at the present moment, he considered it a minor miracle he'd ever been able to concentrate on anything else while in her presence.

He should just do it. Scoot a little closer, lean in and kiss her. What was he waiting for? He'd waited for so many reasons, over the course of so many years. And right now, for the life of him, he couldn't even remember what any of those reasons were.

She looked at him oddly and waved her hand in front of his face. "Josh?"

Snapping out of it, he re-focused on her. "Huh? Oh..." Something dawned on him. "You know what? I forgot. I brought something." His voice started out husky, but had grown stronger by the time he'd finished speaking.

"You did?" She looked at him curiously. "What?"

"I'll be right back. Don't go anywhere." He disappeared quickly into the house.

Smirking slightly, she wondered in amusement where he thought she might go. A minute later he reappeared, holding two clear red plastic cups and a bottle of champagne.

"Where did you get that?" As she spotted the label, her eyes went wide.

"I told you, I brought it."

"Is that the bottle the President gave you?" She asked as she eyed the suspiciously familiar-looking bottle of champagne. As he sat down, she reached over to finger the glass. "It's cold?"

"Yeah. I put it in the refrigerator in the garage shortly after I got here, so you wouldn't find it."

She shook her head vehemently, even as she obliged when he handed her the two cups to hold. "You should save that for a special occasion."

He glanced at her with amusement, but deadpanned, "You're right. Maybe if I wait, one will come up." He began to fiddle with the cork. "Something special, like a celebration of the fact that my best friend is alive and going to be okay... or perhaps I should save it so if by chance... someday, somewhere I find myself outside... looking over a lake... waiting for fireworks to begin while sitting next to an incredibly beautiful woman. I don't know, Donna, I may wait my whole life and never find such an occasion, so we might as well just say to hell with it and drink it now."

"Now you're just teasing me." But she bit her lip and smiled. Feeling the flush of heat in her cheeks once again, she was grateful that the ever-darkening sky lent her cover. She was pretty sure she'd blushed more in the course of the last three days than she had during the entirety of last year.

"Yes, I am," he agreed as he popped the cork and quickly poured the overflowing bubbly into the plastic cups. When he was finished, he reached past her to set the bottle on the table. Giving her his most disarming smile, he asked, "Will you join me anyway?"

She handed him one of the cups. "You know, if we're going to drink something like this, we should probably use some sort of specially made crystal or something, instead of drinking it out of disposable plastic cups."

"Specially made crystal?" He laughed before turning serious. "I like it like this."

"Why?" She asked, taking a sip and feeling the golden liquid caress her throat.

"It feels like us."

Delight spread through her and across her features. It did feel like them. There was a 'them.' She felt giddy. The champagne couldn't be affecting her already, could it? She'd barely tasted it. Better remedy that. After another sip she asked over her cup, "Did you know that Dom Perignon was named after a 17th century monk?"

Josh grinned, knowing he should resist the urge to tease her. If he wanted to kiss her at some point in the near future, like within the next 17 seconds, it probably wasn't in his best interest to mock her. "Seriously, Donna, your dorkiness is exceeded only by that of the President."

Apparently, he just couldn't help himself.

"I'll take that as a compliment," she replied, unfazed. "He was the first person to bottle and cork sparkling wine in the Champagne region."

"The President?"

She nudged him playfully with her shoulder. "The monk."

"Oh."

"You know... when you're drinking champagne it's customary to make a toast."

He met her eye with a twinkle. "Didn't I kind of already do that with the whole I'm-happy-you're-alive-slash-incredibly-beautiful-woman thing?"

"Oh." The look he was giving her made her heart beat even faster, as heat rose through her yet again in a telltale flush. Sooner or later she was going to need someone to hose her off. "I guess we can count that as an acceptable toast."

He probably would have kissed her right then, but just as he'd made up his mind to do it, the show began. When the first fireworks hit the air, he felt her tense up next to him. The explosions were distant but definitely audible. Instantly, he turned to her. "You okay?"

She lowered her gaze in order to look at him, and smiled at the concern written clearly across his face. "I'm fine." His expression was disbelieving, so she slid her free hand down his thigh and squeezed his bare knee reassuringly. "I promise."

"Okay," he replied slowly, but slipped his arm protectively around her shoulders. No harm in keeping her close.

Donna felt her stomach flutter as her heart continued to race. Was this really happening? Was she really sitting in her parents' backyard, watching fireworks and drinking champagne, while Josh sat next to her with his arm around her? As close as they'd previously been, this was definitely part of the new and uncharted territory they'd talked about that morning. But it wasn't hard. In fact, there was nothing difficult about it. It felt easy and real and... right.

Fireworks lit up the night sky. Colorful explosions in different shapes and sizes reflected off of the lake in front of them to create an even more magnificent display. The blasts of light burst in time to the music that played on the radio. They were silent for several minutes as they just sat back and enjoyed the show.

"Beautiful." Donna's voice was wispy as she stared up at the night sky in awe.

Josh turned his head to look at her. "Yes," he agreed.

"It's really amazing..." She said with wonder.

"Yes... amazing," he replied hoarsely, eyes still intently trained on her. He wasn't referring to the show.

Finally, she realized he wasn't watching the fireworks display. She lowered her chin and met his gaze. Somehow, during the show they'd shifted even closer to one another, because when she turned her head towards him, their faces were only a hair's breadth apart. She tried to read his expression in the dark, but failed. Still, she had a pretty good idea of what he might be thinking, because she was thinking it, too.

"Josh?" Her throat went dry as she said his name. She licked her lips as strains of Ray Charles singing 'America the Beautiful' emanated softly from the radio in the background.

"Donna," he whispered before moving almost imperceptibly closer to her. They were close enough now that their noses were barely brushing against one another. He could feel his pulse begin to race as the blood rushed through his veins. It was not wholly unexpected, this physical effect that Donna had on him, but it still took his breath away to realize that she could, well, take his breath away.

She wasn't sure if it was the fireworks or being in such close proximity to Josh, but the air around them was absolutely charged with electricity. She closed her eyes and every sensation was sharpened. His warm breath against her face in the cool night air sent a shiver up her spine. The hair on the back of her neck stood on end, and she could feel every synapse in her body firing at twice the normal rate in anticipation of what would come next.

"Josh..." She murmured his name again.

"Yeah?" She could hear that his breathing was ragged.

"Are you going to kiss me?" She opened her eyes and found him staring back at her.

"Yes." He touched his tongue to the corner of his mouth. "Is that okay?"

"Yes." She gulped and noted that she could see stars in his eyes. Actually, it was the light of the fireworks above, reflected in his pupils, but who's to quibble in these situations? "Um, Josh?"

"What?" He asked, barely above a whisper.

"When?"

He moved even closer, nuzzling his nose against her cheek, their lips only several tantalizing millimeters apart; she could feel their movement as he spoke. "Is now good?"

"Uh-huh..." The sound died in her throat as his lips finally closed against hers. The second that their mouths were intimately linked, Donna felt the distant explosions overhead reverberate in her heart. Her stomach fluttered wildly and delightful shivers shot through her at the feeling of his lips on hers. It flitted through her mind that after all these years of thinking that kissing Josh would be the wrong thing to do, it turned out that nothing could feel more right.

The first several minutes were filled with fairly innocent, chaste kisses. Their lips made slow and easy progress against one another. Unhurried, they were more than content to leisurely learn the taste and touch of one another, through one soft, lingering, wet kiss after another.

Josh wanted to catalogue and memorize every sensation he was experiencing. The cool air that surrounded him on one side contrasted with the heat from her warm body pressed tightly against him on the other. The feeling of her incredibly soft lips pressed against his combined with the intoxicating way she tasted of strawberries and champagne. The distant sound of the still-exploding fireworks, the light bursts overhead still perceptible through his closed eyes. The pure and absolute joy caused by just being there, with her, sharing this moment in time.

Sighing with pleasure, Donna turned towards him slightly, bringing her hands to rest at his waist. The action caused him to slide his left hand up to her neck and draw them closer together, deepening the kiss. He parted her lips with his tongue and she immediately met his tongue with her own, creating a more intense, passionate connection.

Several minutes later, Josh pulled away from her long enough to murmur, "They're playing it." He immediately closed the distance between them and began to gently suck on her lower lip.

"What?" She managed to ask breathlessly several seconds later.

"Lee Greenwood. They're playing your song." He ran his tongue between her lips before trailing kisses from her mouth down along her jaw, and up to her ear.

"What song?" She asked before succumbing to a moan as Josh started sucking on her earlobe.

They missed the entire rest of the fireworks display, including the finale. Donna ended up being okay with that.

Breathless, Donna eventually pulled away and surveyed their surroundings. The night sky was quiet, save for a pop now and again as people shot off their own stashes of fireworks in the neighborhood. A commercial for Big Dave's Used Cars was playing on the radio. She reached behind her and snapped it off. "We missed it."

He smirked at her. "Yes, but I think we did a pretty good job of creating our own fireworks."

"They were okay... I guess." She feigned nonchalance.

"Okay? You guess?" He stared at her incredulously.

"Alright, I'm sure it was better than okay." She let out a soft sigh before shyly meeting his gaze. "If you tell me how long you've wanted that to happen, I'll tell you how long I've wanted it to happen."

He gulped and took a deep breath before questioning, "You've wanted it... for a long time?"

"Of course..."

His heart skipped a beat as he took a serious and earnest tone with her. "Donna, I'm so sorry. I'm so incredibly sorry."

"Why?" Alarm suddenly washed over her-- was this not better than okay after all? Was he sorry he kissed her? Was he sorry for all the things he'd said to her over the weekend? Was he sorry he came? With trepidation, she studied him closely.

"I'm sorry it took almost losing you for me to realize how much I love you."

Donna froze, stunned into silence by his unexpected declaration. It took her what seemed like an eternity, but was probably only several seconds before she recovered enough to react and, you know, start breathing again.

"Josh..." Her voice was a whisper; her chest had constricted and her stomach turned inside out when the full force of his words hit her and she understood their meaning. Tears began to form behind her eyes but they didn't fall, instead they made her eyes shine more brightly. "Me, too."

"You, too?" His face filled with genuine hope even as his lips curved into what could easily become a cocky grin. "You're saying you love me, too?"

"No." She shook her head. "I'm saying I'm sorry it took almost losing me for you to realize how much you love me... too."

For a second he sat immobile, her words startling him. Until he saw the naughty quirk of her lips and he broke into a wide smile, before leaning in and raining kisses on her cheeks, forehead, nose and lips. Finally he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly to him. She slid her arms around his waist, relaxing into his embrace.

"Josh..." She mumbled into his neck a few moments later.

"Yeah?" The feel of her mouth moving against his flesh caused ripples of pleasure through his entire body. He willed himself to gain control; it wasn't the time for that. Yet.

"Me, too... on the I-love-you thing."

He pulled away from her only as far as he needed to in order to search her eyes in the dark. "Really? You don't have to... just because I said-"

"Josh." She silenced him by placing her fingers over his mouth. "I love you."

Was it possible for a heart to expand and swell to such a degree that it was in danger of exploding? Shatter into a thousand pieces because it couldn't contain the enormous volume of joy being experienced by the owner of said heart? Because at the present moment, Josh felt he might be in serious danger of just such a calamity. She loved him. Just five weeks ago he was afraid that he'd lost his chance forever, that this moment had become impossible.

Since those first moments when he walked into the hospital room in Germany, he'd known his own heart. He'd known the truth. He loved her, and it wasn't something he could hide or lock away anymore, or that he wanted to hide anymore. But he hadn't been sure about her feelings, hadn't been sure if he'd already blown his chance with her by years of misdirection and inaction. Especially when he'd realized that he wasn't her only bedside visitor in Germany.

But he didn't have to hope or wonder or worry anymore; he had his answer. She loved him, and he had never been so thankful for anything in all his life. Her words were punctuated by the fact that she was once again kissing him senseless, and he pulled her against him as tightly as he could.

The need for air ultimately pried them apart. She traced circles on his bare thigh with her fingers as she settled into the crook of his arm. "What's going to happen when I come back?"

He crinkled his brow. "What do you mean? Like at work?"

She shrugged and nodded against his shoulder. That wasn't exactly what she meant, but it was a place to start.

"Well, I think the cat is pretty much out of the bag on my feelings for you... which reminds me, I need to call CJ. And like I said this morning, we'll figure out the professional. Maybe a transfer to another department within the White House... definitely a promotion."

She chewed the inside of her cheek anxiously as she pulled herself back upright. It was true that she'd wanted more responsibility, but she'd never not wanted to work for him. It was what she knew and it was where she'd always wanted to be. "Not work in the Deputy Chief of Staff's office?"

"Yeah," he replied in a tone that was both reluctant and optimistic. Losing her professionally was definitely the downside, but considering the alternative, it was worth the sacrifice.

"Oh..."

"What?"

"Don't tell my boss, because I wouldn't want him to get a swelled head, but I like working for him... a lot. Most of the time, anyway."

Josh felt his insides warm at her sentiment. "Well... then, one way or another, we'll have to find a way to continue working together in some capacity. We've always made a good team."

"We do make a good team," she agreed before she lowered her voice to a sexy purr. "You know what I was thinking could happen when I come back?"

"What?" He was intrigued by her tone.

She leaned over to whisper in his ear. "I was thinking that when I'm back in D.C. and feeling a hundred percent..." A flush heated her whole body as she spoke. "Then we can start having all the sex we've been storing up all these years."

He lost all ability to speak for a moment. But he was nothing if not known for possessing a quick recovery. He smirked. "A hundred percent? We have to wait for a hundred percent? You know in the pros, they play through the pain."

She giggled. "Well, if the pros do it... how about we wait for ninety percent?"

He wagged his eyebrows at her. "I can live with that." Suddenly an intense look returned to his eyes, as he became completely serious. "Donna, I'm kidding, you know that, right? I will wait for you... forever."

She nodded wordlessly as she felt tears sting the back of her eyes and a lump gather in her throat.

"Actually..." His arm was still around her and he ran his fingers up and down the soft skin of her upper arm as he spoke. "Speaking of what's going to happen when you come back..."

"Yeah?"

"First, I want you to know I'll support any decision you make." He took a deep-breath; this was something he's started thinking about even before he'd made the trip to Wisconsin.

"Okay..." Her reply was slow and careful; she had no idea where he was going with this.

"After three or four more weeks working with Sven, you should be getting around on your crutches pretty well and even bearing some weight on your leg, right?"

"They say I can start putting some weight on my leg at six weeks, which is next week..."

"I was thinking that at the end of the month I could come back here and take you home with me." Her eyes went wide, but he continued speaking in a rush. "I know you were planning on spending the bulk of your recovery here, probably until Labor Day, but this plan gives you those weeks with your family and working with Sven, and by then you won't need round-the-clock care anymore, and we can find you a physical therapist in Washington." He finally stopped speaking, slightly out-of-breath, and watched carefully for her reaction.

Just the fact that he would even suggest it made her heart soar. "Trust me, I want to come back home... I mean, really..." She leaned over and pressed her lips to his for several protracted moments before continuing, "...really want to come back to D.C., but I don't think I'll be able to manage completely on my own in my apartment, even in three weeks' time..."

"Donna." He looked at her steadily, his voice both shy and imploring. "I'm talking about you coming to stay in my apartment. With me. I'm talking about me taking care of you."

"Oh... Josh." She felt tears welling behind her eyes as she wrapped herself around him again. Sniffling into his neck, he felt her tears dampen his skin.

"I'm serious, Donna. I can't... I need..." He struggled for words. "I know this isn't about what I need. But the last month has been interminable without you. I don't want to be away from you for so long. Ever again."

"But you'll be at work all the time..." Her voice trailed off, still muffled by their embrace. It wasn't going to be practical to go back to D.C., but boy, did she want to. The thought of Josh leaving tomorrow, and of not seeing him for God knows how long, left her feeling cold and empty.

"I'll be at work, yes, but not all of the time." He'd thought about this a lot since the incident Gaza. His life, his work, his priorities, they needed revamping.

"Joshua, whom are you talking to?" She pulled back from him and adjusted herself in the seat. "I know your schedule better than you do."

He had to give her that; it was certainly true. "Yes," Josh took a deep breath, "but you also know that I work so much because I choose to."

She nodded. That was also true.

"Donna, for years, work has been the most important thing in my life. And as dedicated as I've been, you were a large part of what made being there so appealing." He smiled when he saw her eyes go wide. "Things have changed."

Donna reached out and gently brushed her fingers down the side of his face. As if learning for the first time who he was. "You," she began, looking at him tenderly, "have changed. I mean, you're still you. You're still Josh... but different."

"I made a deal," he said by way of explanation.

"What?"

"In Germany. I made a deal with myself, with God, with whoever was listening, that if you came out of surgery okay... if you made it, I promised I would tell you how I felt about you." Even as his voice choked with emotion, his lips quirked upward in a half-smile. "That I wouldn't take you for granted anymore. That if given a second chance... I wouldn't waste it."

She swallowed hard; completely overwhelmed, she was unable to verbalize any of her whirling emotions.

"These jobs of ours, they've taken their toll. We both have scars down our chests to prove it. And while I'm still dedicated to my job and to the President, I don't want it to be my number one priority anymore. It can't be..." He laced his fingers with hers and his eyes drilled through her, "...because I can only have one number one priority."

With her free hand, she brushed away the tears that had begun to fall down her cheeks. But he didn't stop pleading his case.

"So come home with me, Donnatella. As soon as you feel comfortable, three weeks, four weeks, whatever... but let me take you home. It's true, I'll have to work, but I promise you that when I don't *need* to be there, I won't be hanging around like I used to. And we can bring in help if necessary, whatever you need."

"Josh..." His appeal had left her an absolute puddle. How could she refuse? The truth was that she didn't want to refuse. She knew he was probably kidding himself about cutting back on his work hours, but she also believed he honestly wanted to try. She looked back up at him with a gleam in her eye. "How about two weeks?"

"Really?" He raised his eyebrows and felt his stomach untwist. Until that moment, he hadn't realized how nervous he'd been about asking her to stay with him.

"Yes," she nodded. "I want to come home... I want to be with you."

They stared at one another, both smiling for several minutes, before he once again wrapped his arm around her and pulled her to him. She snuggled against his chest.

It was several minutes before she spoke again. "I can't believe how fast this weekend flew by."

"I know," he agreed.

"But I had a good 4th of July. A really good 4th of July."

"Me, too, Donnatella." He kissed the top of her head. "Thanks for inviting me."

"Thanks for coming. I'm sorry you didn't get to have the full cheese experience, though."

"Despite the fact that it wasn't much of a cheese vacation, I've had... a very good time."

"You know, there may be other cheese opportunities."

"Really? Like what?"

"Well... did you know that in some circles Christmas is referred to as the official cheese holiday?"

"I've never heard that..."

"Of course not. You're Jewish." It was only a little white lie. After all, she was pretty sure that, if pressed, she could come up with some holiday food that involved cheese.

"Oh... that explains it." Josh grinned broadly. "Well if my cheese experience was incomplete, then we definitely have to find a way to remedy that. Besides, rumor has it that Christmas is going to be... interesting this year."

He smiled, remembering Tommy mimicking his mother: 'Mom says you're going to marry my Aunt Donnatella, maybe by Christmas, definitely by Easter.' As freaked out as Josh was when he'd heard that, maybe the kid wasn't that far off base after all...


End file.
